Stijn Demeulenaere

Stijn Demeulenaere is a sound artist, field recordist, and musician. He studied sociology, cultural studies, and audiovisual arts.

He was curator and producer of Radio Eliot, an experimental radio project on Radio Scorpio, and worked as a journalist for Radio 1, Klara, and Radio K Centrale (IT).

Stijn works with sound because it is at once immediate, malleable, and mysterious. In his sonic practice, he explores social structures, personal narratives, and the unconscious imagination. He creates installations, soundscapes, and collaborates with performers.

His artistic research focuses on the phenomenology of listening: the relationship between sound and its perception or interpretation, and the way listening, identity, and sonic experience intertwine. A significant part of his practice is rooted in field recording, through which he also examines the acoustic properties of spaces and places — attempting to understand environments by listening to them.

His work has been presented at numerous venues and festivals, including Festival van Vlaanderen Kortrijk, Concertgebouw Brugge, Kaaitheater, Ancienne Belgique, STUK, iMAL, Musica, Bâtard Festival, Nederlands Instituut voor Mediakunst (NL), KIKK Festival, Casino Luxembourg (LU), Den Frie (DK), Reina Sofia Museum (ES), Iklectik (UK), Le Mans Sonore (FR), International Film Festival Rotterdam (NL), Rencontres Internationales Paris/Berlin (FR/DE), NAISA (CA), São Paulo Bienal (BR), November Music (NL), FIBER Festival (NL), Radio Futura Festival (PT), Dark Matter Games (IT), and KONTEJNER (HR).

Stijn frequently collaborates with other artists — sometimes as a sound designer, sometimes as a co-creator. He has worked with choreographers Marisa Cabal, Stav Yeini, and Veli Lehtovaara; theatre-makers Mesut Arslan, Pieter De Buysser, and Kevin Trappeniers; and filmmakers and video artists such as Jan Locus and Visual Kitchen. With Georgia Vardarou and Marisa Cabal, he created the site-specific performance Sonic Theatres, and with Primož Sukič and Ruben Orio, the performance Everybody Lives Here. He has also collaborated with musicians such as Ruben Machtelinckx, Fred Leroux, and Jo Thielemans.

He has been an artist-in-residence at institutions such as S+T+Arts4WaterII (EU), Overtoon, STUK, C-TAKT, iMAL, De Grote Post, Stray Light, and Imagine2020 (UK). His work has received awards including the Engine Room International Sound Art Award (UK), Sound of the Year Awards (UK), and the Grand Prix at the Split Videoart Festival (HR). He has also been nominated for the LOOP Discovery Award (ES), the European Sound Art Award (DE), and the Week van de Klank field recording award (BE).

In 2017, he released his first album, Latitudes – September 2016, on the Brussels-based label Silken Tofu.

Since 2014, Stijn has been an associated artist at Kunstenwerkplaats Brussels. He lives and works in Brussels (BE).

Projects

Presentations

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