DEEP LISTENINGS
Tong Niu
Bio
Tong Niu is a London based Chinese sound artist and researcher whose evocative practice centers on deep listening immersive technology, and spectral aesthetics. She works across installation, performance, and digital media to transform silence and memory into "sonic dreamscapes," reclaiming erased voices-especially those of women and spirits--from forgotten histories. Rooted in feminist theory, spectral ethnography, and psychoacoustic exploration, her projects create sensorial experiences that surface emotional resonance within invisible systems.
Her research further highlights how natural ecology, ambient sound, experiential design, and cybernetic-psychedelic aesthetics intersect to unearth therapeutic and emotional narratives through field recordings.
Tong crafting "rhythmic bells' from wandering sounds, constructing immersive soundscapes that reconnect listeners with environments, heritage, and hidden trauma. These pieces probe marginalized cultures and ephemeral collective memory, offering dynamic sonic dialogues meant to foster psychological healing and re-tune our perception of inner and outer worlds.
Introduction of Research
I am a deep-listening researcher, delving into the latent sonic language within natural ecology. My work merges moving images, experiential design, and psychoactive aesthetics to transform sound waves into polyphonic expressions. Through spectral ethnography, I reveal the healing potential of sound narratives, linking individual inner worlds with their surrounding environments. My practice engages with marginalized voices and historical remnants, expanding narrative spaces to explore resonances within immersive soundscapes.
Each work involves field recordings that capture a state of hyper-perception, transforming wandering sounds into rhythmic “bells,” resonant carriers interwoven with ambient spatial journeys. By listening, tracing, gazing, and reshaping, I engage in a dynamic dialogue with natural relics, creating a polyphonic healing space. My research not only examines the application of immersive soundscapes and cybernetic principles in art but also offers a perceptual approach to reconnecting with personal, historical, and natural realms, fostering psychological and emotional healing.