Timeshift explores the acoustic ecology of South Korea, and documents this in a unique medium, an “audiophotobook”. By using photos made in the winter of 2016 by Sébastien Robert and recording soundscapes in the summer of 2017 by Mark IJzerman in exactly the same locations, Timeshift explores both the differences and similarities between what one sees and what one hears in these environments at different times of the year. By capturing the locations in both audio and picture, it gives the viewer a fuller understanding of the locations.

The medium of Timeshift combines the old and the new. It is presente as a book, but with the ability to play sound according to the interaction with the book. This way it draws the viewer in while leaving room for imagination. Through augmenting photos with sound, a new narrative is created. A picture only captures a small part of one moment in time. As sound waves travel everywhere, it is not possible to “frame” sounds. Hence sound can be viewed as a more honest medium. In the words of soundscape ecologist Bernie Krause: “a picture is worth a thousand words, but a soundscape is worth a thousand pictures.”