bodie stanley

Sonic Spores, 2025 
 

Sonic Spores is a series of interactive sound sculptures inspired by John Cage’s fascination with mushroom foraging and the unpredictability—or indeterminacy—that shaped both his musical practice and his way of moving through the world. The works feature clusters of mushroom forms, made from brass, steel, concrete, and wood, placing organic shapes in tension with industrial materials. 

Placed throughout the gallery, some pieces are clearly visible while others are more discreetly positioned—inviting both direct engagement and moments of quiet discovery, not unlike the experience of coming across fungi in a forest. Visitors are encouraged to play the sculptures by striking them like bells or cymbals. The resulting tones layer and shift as different people move through the space, creating a soundscape that’s shaped by chance, presence, and participation. 

The work draws on psychogeographic ideas of wandering and spatial awareness, encouraging intuitive movement and personal exploration. It also gestures toward the structure of mycorrhizal networks—vast, often unseen systems through which fungi and plants exchange nutrients and information. While these networks remain underground, they are essential to ecosystems. In a similar way, Sonic Spores explores subtle, often unnoticed forms of connection—between people, sounds, and environments. 

Though made from industrial materials, the mushroom forms suggest resilience and quiet persistence. Each sculpture is titled after a species of mushroom, grounding the work in the language of ecology and encouraging closer attention to the natural world. 

Part sculpture, part instrument, part invitation, Sonic Spores offers a space for slowing down, for listening, and for becoming part of something shared, shifting, and alive.