Brooklyn’s ‘speaker sculptor’ and audio guru Devon Turnbull has brought his immersive HiFi Listening Room Dream No. 1 across the pond this month to London’s Lisson Gallery.
The free, drop-in listening experience encourages visitors to ‘surrendering to the act of listening’. Turnbull has crafted an absorptive carpet-lined listening room with a wall of neo-brutalist speakers, a turntable, amplifiers, and meditation seats.
‘Music is the most powerful art form,’ says Turnbull. ‘When we think about music venues, we have concert halls, jazz bars and nightclubs – and those are really cool ways of experiencing music – but a lot of the time the recorded music becomes the masterpiece.’
Turnbull, also known as OJAS, is described by GQ as ‘the man whose sound systems make you feel like you’re on psychedelics’ and spent years hand-building custom sound systems for clients ranging from SUPREME to Virgil Abloh and Brooklyn club Public Records – said to have the best sound in New York.
He first launched HiFi Listening Room Dream No.1 at Lisson’s New York space last summer as part of the group exhibition, The odds are good, the goods are odd. This London version is open until 26 August 2023.
Visitors can enjoy a curated programme of records inside Turnbull’s ‘shrine to music’, ranging from unreleased tracks to classic vinyl and analogue tapes, jazz maestros Blue Notes, to live performances. Lisson’s website has the full rundown.
Tuesday – Saturday, 11 am – 6 pm at 27 Bell Street, London NW1 5BY, UK
