The Symphony of Space and Light
Ezra Masch on the Intersection of Music, Art, and Audience Engagement
Ezra Masch discusses his innovative fusion of sculpture and music, his approach to immersive installations, adapting works for diverse venues, and the essential role of audience interaction in experiencing art.
Ezra Masch stands out as a visionary artist whose work transcends traditional boundaries, seamlessly blending sound, light, and space into immersive environments that feel both alive and transformative. His multimedia installations do more than fill a space; they reshape it, allowing audiences to experience sound as a physical, visible force and light as a pulsing, rhythmic presence. Drawing from his dual backgrounds in sculpture and music, Masch’s signature project, VOLUMES, exemplifies his unique vision. Through live percussion and custom-designed light structures, each installation pulses and resonates in sync with the performance, creating an atmosphere where sound and sight merge. Masch’s work invites viewers into a world where art isn’t just observed—it’s experienced viscerally.
This exclusive interview offers an intimate glimpse into Masch’s creative journey, where he reveals the deep connections between his musical and sculptural practices and how they shape his approach to installation art. Reflecting on the impact of his time at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, he shares insights on adapting his work for varied spaces—from major museums to experimental project venues. Masch’s reflections on audience interaction reveal his installations as collaborative experiences that dissolve traditional barriers between artist and audience, performer and space.
Ezra Masch, an interdisciplinary artist, brings light and sound together to create unique, immersive experiences that engage and transform audiences.
How does your background in both sculpture and music influence your approach to creating immersive multimedia installations?
I think a lot about overlapping concepts in music and visual art. When it comes to both sculpture and music there’s always a compositional structure at play. It could be the way that multiple parts come together to form a whole, or the use of a series of chance operations within a set of parameters. Time-based and object-based composition have some obvious differences, but there are a lot of interesting parallels too. In my work, I really like creating spaces where 3-dimensional structures and temporal structures intersect.
Can you describe a particular installation that you feel best captures the fusion of sonic and visual elements in your work?
My ongoing project VOLUMES uses live sound from percussion instruments to activate a series of immersive light installations. With each installation, I transform a new exhibition space into an interactive audio-visual instrument. It’s always evolving. The latest one was in Austin, TX last month and it featured performances by 6 different musicians. Each artist explored the connection between sound, light, and space in their own unique way.
How has your time at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture shaped your artistic practice?
Skowhegan opened me up to different ways of thinking. There were so many artists coming from different places, and doing different things. It was an atmosphere of complete freedom, and it inspired me to change course with my art. Instead of continuing with the trajectory of my sculpture practice, I started to lean into my love of music. I brought my drum set there and formed a band with a few of the other residents. I began making drawings based on musical scores. These were some of my first attempts at merging sound and image. It definitely marked a turning point in my artistic practice.
Your work has been exhibited in a wide range of venues, from museums to project spaces. How do you adapt your installations to different environments?
The layout is always based on the proportions of the built environment. I use the height, length, and width of each space to determine a ratio that defines the arrangement of lights. It’s a way of connecting the instrument and the architecture. But my installations also adapt to different spaces in terms of public programming. Larger institutions are able to facilitate community engagement initiatives like open calls and educational programs, whereas independent venues function more like pop-up performances. One feels like an exhibition while the other feels like a rock concert, but I really enjoy aspects of both.
How do you see the relationship between audience interaction and the success of your installations?
The audience can literally see the performer’s ideas taking shape all around them. And this profoundly impacts their perception of sound. For performers and audiences alike, I think it transforms the way that we both create and experience music. My installations are most successful when the distinctions between performer, audience, instrument, and space become blurred.
What role do you believe sound plays in enhancing the emotional or conceptual impact of your visual art?
Sound (and especially music) makes us experience emotions in a way that is impossible to fully understand. My method of visualizing sound is based on a mathematical system in which measurements of frequency and amplitude are represented using coordinates in a 3-dimensional grid. So my work combines an approach that is methodical and cerebral with an expression that is very mysterious and visceral. It kind of exists in these two worlds at once.
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