Artwork
Forest Sounds
Forest Sounds is a print by James Faure Walker. It dates from 1989 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
The top and bottom edges have test strips for colors and grays—like a science experiment.
This print is a wild mix of colors and shapes. On the left, there’s a field of dots and streaks in red, blue, and yellow. The middle shows a dark, tangled cityscape with buildings and lights. To the right, a purple blob floats over a busy, colorful mess.
The top and bottom edges have test strips for colors and grays—like a science experiment. This was made in 1989, and it’s not a painting but a print.
Next, check out the Victoria and Albert Museum to see more of this work.
Overview
Forest Sounds is a 1989 print created by James Faure‑Walker through a computer‑assisted workflow that employed a Xerox 4020 ink‑jet printer. The work measures roughly a standard sheet size and is presented as a single sheet rather than a painted surface. It is part of the artist’s early explorations of digital image generation and printout.
Technique & Style
The image was generated on a computer and transferred to paper using the Xerox 4020’s ink‑jet output, a method that allowed precise control of color placement while retaining a lo‑fi, experimental aesthetic. The composition juxtaposes dense, chaotic color fields with a silhouetted urban silhouette, and includes peripheral test strips of solid hues and greyscales that function as a visual calibration chart.
Subject & Meaning
Visually, the piece divides into three zones: a left‑hand area of multicolored dots and streaks, a central dark, tangled cityscape punctuated by illuminated windows, and a right‑hand purple mass hovering over a frenetic, multihued background. The title suggests an auditory dimension, inviting viewers to imagine the overlapping sounds of a forest and an urban environment merged in a single visual field.
History & Provenance
Created in 1989, Forest Sounds entered the public domain through acquisition by the Victoria and Albert Museum, where it is catalogued among the museum’s collection of late‑20th‑century digital prints. The work reflects Faure‑Walker’s transition from traditional media to computer‑mediated processes during that period.
Context
The late 1980s saw rapid development of desktop publishing and early ink‑jet technology, which artists like Faure‑Walker adopted to probe the possibilities of digital colour and form. Forest Sounds exemplifies this moment, combining the experimental ethos of the era with a visual language that anticipates later digital collage and glitch aesthetics.
Artist & collection
Artist
James Faure Walker’s prints catch the pulse of modern London. In *Bloomsbury* and *Soho* he folds city lights into layered prints that feel both precise and alive, while *Forest Sounds* turns foliage into rhythmic…
