Nieuwe Instituut’s Through Sounds project presents Clippings, a new series of DIY-style publications that bring together fragments from its ongoing activities. The name refers to the sonic phenomenon of ‘clipping’, whereby audio distorts when signals exceed their limits, as well as to the concept of ‘clippings’ as gathered, cut and rearranged excerpts. Several editions will appear each year, tracing and highlighting developments within Through Sounds as they unfold.
For Clipping I: Coming of Age, editors Federica Notari and Natasha Rijkhoff compiled fragments from the events and gatherings held during the ongoing two-year collaboration between the Nieuwe Instituut’s Through Sounds project and the Rewire Festival. This co-curated, two-part programme explored the social and affective infrastructures of sound and music.
The theme of Coming of Age emerged from a desire to explore processes of becoming, not as a single transition, but as an ongoing iterative state. In this context, music acts as a connective tissue, bridging isolated experiences and communal infrastructures to form networks of shared meaning and distribution. Tracks become social objects: they carry stories, spark interactions and transform spaces.
The publication features written contributions by Emily Moore, Federica Notari, Katía Truijen and Natasha Rijkhoff; and the transcript of a conversation between Ash Kilmartin, Brandon LaBelle, Callum Dean, Jan-Pieter 't Hart, Tjobo Kho, Golnoosh Heshmati, Federica Notari and Katía Truijen.
Edited by Federica Notari and Natasha Rijkhoff, designed by Catherine Hu and Cleo Tsw, and printed and bound by No Kiss. Published by Nieuwe Instituut, 2025, 44 pages.