J o h a n n e s B a r f i e l d
VISUAL + SOUND ARTIST
PASSENGER SEAT
Immersive six-channel spatial audio performance using six automobiles arranged in a circle with their doors open, multichannel audio interface, independent audio connections, and vehicle sound systems.
Composition and production: Johannes Barfield
Voice performances: Chaz Becoat, Imwen Eke, Szu-Han Ho, and Juneaice Nichole
Sound engineering: Richard Grouser III
Presented as part of: Collective Futures Parallel Play Symposium, Asian Arts Initiative, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
October 24, 2026
Passenger Seat is an immersive, six-channel sound performance by Johannes Barfield that transforms six parked cars into a collective sound system. Presented on October 24, 2026, in Philadelphia as part of the Collective Futures Parallel Play Symposium at Asian Arts Initiative, the performance extends Barfield's solo exhibition Soft Crash beyond the gallery and into public space.
For the performance, six cars are arranged in a circle with their doors open, surrounding Barfield and the audience. Positioned at the center, Barfield connects each vehicle's sound system to a multichannel audio interface, sending independent audio signals to the cars. Sounds move from vehicle to vehicle, creating an immersive spatial composition in which the cars function together as a single instrument. The arrangement transforms an everyday object associated with personal transportation into a shared listening environment.
The performance draws from Pilot Coaltrain, an expansive science fiction narrative Barfield has been developing through sound, sculpture, installation, and a graphic novel in progress. The story follows Pilot Coaltrain, a former archaeologist tasked with returning looted artifacts and human remains in a world shaped by ecological uncertainty and emerging technologies.
Composed and produced by Barfield, the sound work combines original piano compositions, field recordings gathered over several years, computer-processed sounds, and performances by voice actors, friends, and family. These elements create an evolving sonic narrative that surrounds listeners with voices, environmental sounds, and imagined environments. As individual sounds travel between the six vehicles, the audience experiences the narrative through movement, proximity, and shifting perspectives.
As an extension of Soft Crash, Passenger Seat reimagines the six-channel gallery installation through the sound systems of automobiles. By moving the work outside the gallery, Barfield introduces the composition into an environment where everyday urban sounds become part of the listening experience. The performance invites audiences to reconsider how familiar technologies and public spaces can become sites for storytelling, experimentation, and collective experience.
