Yuri Suzuki's Utooto is a build-it-yourself sound sculpture informed by utopian cities

Sound artist Yuri Suzuki has unveiled the Utooto exhibition in London, which will let visitors build a modular installation of plastic pipes and horns to communicate using sounds instead of words.

Suzuki drew on utopian cities – including Brasília, Milton Keynes and Walt Disney's EPCOT – for Utooto, which was named after the word 'utopia' and 'oto', the Japanese word for sound.

"I conceived an installation where people could actively build their own prototype utopia in real time, using simple, primitive materials — pipes and horns — to create small acoustic sculptures and architectural forms that also function as communication devices," Suzuki told Dezeen.

"For over a decade, my work has explored how sound can bring people closer together, and in a time of increasing division, I wanted to create an exhibition that could serve as a collective, hands-on prototype for a better future."

He was also inspired by architect Le Corbusier's collaboration with a composer for the installation, which is on show at the Camden Arts Projects gallery in London.

"The concept originates from an installation I presented in 2015 at the Saint-Étienne Design Biennale, inside Le Corbusier's church," Suzuki said.

"I was particularly inspired by the period when Le Corbusier collaborated with Iannis Xenakis, and by works where sound and architecture were directly intertwined," he continued.

"A major reference was the 1958 Philips Pavilion, whose form was based on Xenakis's musical scores and sound wave patterns."

Utooto is made from pre-cut pipes and horn modules that are connected to create small structures, which are then added to the central "city" of the installation.

"Each piece functions both visually and acoustically, carrying sound between different points," Suzuki explained. "As more participants add to the structure, the soundscape and the architecture grow in parallel — much like a prototype community that evolves through the contributions of its members."

Suzuki used lightweight materials to create Utooto in order for the pieces to be easy and safe for everyone to handle.

The artist hoped that this would encourage participation from visitors of all ages and abilities to create the installation "much like the building blocks of a model city, but reimagined for sound and interaction."

The final installation will also feature a soundscape made from human voices speaking in a number of different languages.

Its physical aspect, meanwhile, could become immense according to Suzuki, who sees Utooto as a continuous project.

"In theory, it could be as large as the space — or the community — allows. With enough components and participants, it could fill an entire building or connect across multiple sites," he said.

"The scale is limited only by the imagination and collaboration of the people involved, echoing the idea of a city that is never finished, always in the making."

To Suzuki, the installation is not so much about the final sound sculpture itself, but about the process of getting there.

"I wanted to create not just an artwork to look at, but a space that functions like a public workshop for building a community — much like EPCOT's original vision of a city as a constantly evolving prototype," Suzuki concluded.

"When visitors collaborate on constructing something, they're not just making physical structures; they're also forming temporary social connections, negotiating ideas, and shaping the environment together. That process is the real artwork."

Previous works by the artist include an acoustic playground in a Shanghai park and a "trumpet-like" art installation in San Francisco.

The photography is by Deniz Guzel.

Utooto takes place from 8 August to 5 October at Camden Arts Projects, 176 Prince Wales Road, London NW5 3PT. See Dezeen Events Guide for an up-to-date list of architecture and design events taking place around the world.

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