Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller are Canadian artists based in Grindrod, British Columbia, who have collaborated since the 1980s. Having first met in college, their individual practices gradually evolved into a deeply intertwined artistic partnership—one in which ideas are sparked and developed through a continual dialogue between the two.
At the core of their work is a profound belief in the power of sound to transport listeners into alternate realities. Their practice centers on immersive audio and video experiences that respond to specific environments—whether as outdoor walks or indoor installations—blurring the boundaries between cinema, theater, radio, literature, and sculpture. These works often guide participants through layered, narrative-rich scenarios, merging real-time surroundings with recorded elements in a way that heightens awareness and unsettles perception.
Through this interplay of sound, story, and setting, Cardiff and Miller create experiences that are at once intimate and theatrical, using fictional narrative and meticulously crafted audio to challenge conventional ways of sensing and interpreting the world around us. Their work is a continual exploration of how technology, memory, and the act of listening can reshape the experience of place and time.
Hill Climbing, 1999
Telephone / Time, 2004
Verlag der Buchhandlung Walther König, 2009
Museum of Modern Art, Dubrovnik, Croatia
April 20–June 26, 2004 | TBA21, Vienna
November 25, 2004–April 30, 2005 | TBA21, Vienna
October 6, 2010-February 21, 2011 | LABoral, Gijón / Spain
Sternberg Press, 2020