Invocation, CA + Learning to Listen | 2023

For the sound piece Invocation, CA, Geis separately recorded her California-based friends and acquaintances vocalizing what they imagine the ocean sounds like. These recordings were then layered into a single 2-minute looped sound piece that presents a California-specific collective invocation of the ocean, as filtered through the consciousness and voices of people living in the region. In this time of climate disaster what does it mean to collectively invoke the ocean? What does it mean to listen deeply to its response echoing in our own voices?

Voice credits: Samer Araabi, Zack Bodinger, Amy Chang, Ben Cook, Jillian Crochet, Michel Dedeo, Katy Dion, Anna Gunderson, Irene Gutierrez, Katie Hatch, Aaron Hebert, Johanna Hoffman, Karuna Kiffa Holm, Amanda Hughen, Wiley Kestner, Katie Lackler, Tom Lent, Becca Lewis, Joe Mega, Christine Nguyen, Greg Niemeyer, Christopher Nickel, Freya Nickel, Mari Nomura, Michelle Ott, Rachelle Reichert, Lila Rubenstein, Matt Seneca, Kate Sim, Elizabeth Sims, Anna Thanukos, Cosima Wilkening, Magda Wilkening, Angela Willets, and Minoosh Zomorodinia.

Learning to Listen is a risograph print depicting the inside of a Red Abalone Shell. This large marine snail is an iconic species of the Northern California coast kelp ecosystem. Red Abalone populations have declined dramatically due to a combination of overfishing and an ecological cascade triggered by climate change. This cascade resulted in the devastation of their kelp forest habitats and the alarming spread of abalone wasting disease.

The Chumash from the coastal and island regions of Southern California, and the Yukots of San Joaquin Valley believe that abalone shells grant departed souls enhanced sensory perception and expression in the afterlife. Such narratives, together with the abalone shell’s ear-like shape and iridescent reflectiveness, serve as a poignant reminder of the reciprocal power of deep witnessing and mirroring that extends beyond our human selves.

A print of Learning to Listen was gifted in thanks to the people who lent their voices to Invocation, CA.