Yuri Suzuki 2026: Transforming Rides into Acoustic Sculptures
Sound artist Yuri Suzuki presents Onomatopia at Osh Gallery in London, turning five classic amusement park rides into acoustic sculptures until January 7, 2027.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
- Yuri Suzuki is holding a solo exhibition titled Onomatopia at Osh Gallery in London.
- Five classic amusement park rides are reconfigured into colorful structural acoustic instruments.
- The exhibition runs from November 10, 2026, to January 7, 2027, co-curated with Vicky Richardson.
Renowned sound artist Yuri Suzuki has unveiled a striking new exhibition that reinterprets classic amusement park rides as large-scale structural acoustic instruments. Titled Onomatopia, the solo exhibition is staged at Osh Gallery within Pentagram’s London headquarters in Islington, exploring the intersection of play, acoustic engineering, and speculative public architecture while drawing conceptual inspiration from Thomas More’s 1516 text Utopia, mid-century World Expos, and theme parks like EPCOT.
The exhibition is centered around five vibrant dioramas that serve as functional prototypes for future public acoustic interventions, namely The Roller-Coaster (Coaster of Sounds), The Ferris Wheel, The Dodgems, The Helter-Skelter, and The Sonic Carousel. Each kinetic sonic structure is constructed from modular networks of pigmented industrial piping, vertical collection funnels, and directional acoustic horns, incorporating dedicated sound compositions that expand upon Suzuki’s earlier work from the 2025 Royal Academy Summer Exhibition.
Stock photo for illustration only, not from the actual event
Alongside the five spatial prototypes, the gallery displays process models, recorded audio tracks, historical references such as a 2001 Walt Disney World map and an Åbäke map of Margate, and a commissioned short film directed by Dylan Hayes that documents the mechanical kinematics and soundscapes of the assemblies.
This exhibition offers a profound critique of modern design by challenging the prevailing dominance of visual culture. By turning playful, kinetic theme park architecture into acoustic soundscapes, the artist encourages visitors to appreciate spatial audio and construct an alternative landscape of escape to reflect on contemporary reality.
"Sound can be a powerful tool for good and bad, but it is often overlooked in a world that is dominated by visual culture. My Onomatopian dioramas use the forms that create sound to build a landscape of escape, from where we can look back at reality and consider how we want the world to be"
Yuri Suzuki
Curated collaboratively by Yuri Suzuki and Vicky Richardson—founder of Pick Up Architecture and former Head of Architecture at the Royal Academy of Arts—Onomatopia is hosted at The Old Sorting House, 46 Essex Road, London. The exhibition runs from November 10th, 2026, to January 7th, 2027, with production support from Christopher Kidall Park, Robert Poll, Maki Suzuki, Dylan Hayes, and Theodor-Alexandru Petrea.
Source: designboom
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