‘How are you today?’: Listening to the Manus Recording Project Collective

What does waiting sound like? What does it mean to listen across vast distances, both political and geographical?

From 24 July to 28 October 2018, six men – Farhad Bandesh, Behrouz Boochani, Samad Abdul, Shamindan Kanapathi, Kazem Kazemi and Abdul Aziz Muhamat – sent daily 10-minute recordings to the Potter from Manus Island, where they have been for the last five years. They are, in effect, developing an archive of what it sounds like to live in limbo.

At this event, attendees were invited to spend one hour of their time listening to recordings from this archive – one from each man. In doing so, they were invited to consider: what does hearing tell us about what we don’t, or can’t, hear? What does listening demand of the body and what does patience require?

At this event, which took place in the Eavesdropping exhibition space, Michael Green, André Dao and Jon Tjhia also spoke about the Manus Recording Project Collective.