Jason Richardson's Soundscapes on exhibition at Wagga Art Gallery

Leeton artist Jason Richardson is currently showcasing his well-known work titled Soundscapes at the Wagga Art Gallery until October 4.

Soundscapes is in the part of the gallery called The Channel. It brings together a sample of audiovisual "snapshots" and reimaginings made from local sites.

Mr Richardson has developed this creative practise over the last decade, since he had an idea to remix the sounds of local playgrounds for Leeton's centenary.

In fact, one of The Irrigator's articles brought that project to the attention of the Canadian Playgroundology website, which wrote "Richardson is defining a niche of playful, minimalist music ... I love the inventiveness, the audacity and the fun".

Soundscapes highlights some of Mr Richardson's unconventional recording techniques and brings together vignettes that reflect his interest in landscapes and music-making using a remix aesthetic.

"It's been surprising and rewarding for me to see the interest generated by that music made in our town, including profiles in national media," Mr Richardson said.

"My approach of sampling locations has taken Leeton around the world, including the projection commissions developed for urban centres and a piece called 'Willimbong' was exhibited in London.

"So it's great to be able to share the results of my art-making in a regional gallery and they've done a great job in presenting my work.

"Originally I'd planned to use a keyboard to make the exhibit interactive, but had to change plans when COVID-19 arrived."

The gallery's technician, Jeremy Kruckel, has developed that idea of Mr Richardson's further, so there's a motion sensor that triggers a random video when someone enters the room.

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Leeton residents have been invited to attend the exhibition and view some of the other creativity that is also on show.

Wagga Art Gallery curator Drew Halyday said Mr Richardson's curation was one that would interest many.

"Jason Richardson works as some sort of 'sonic archaeologist', armed with contact microphones and the local landscape as his instrument," Mr Halyday said.

"He samples the environments around him, from public playgrounds and farm machinery, to remote creek crossings and quiet bushland settings to compose playful 'vignettes' that reveal the resonances of the Riverina region."

One resident who has sampled the exhibition is Aanya Whitehead from Western Riverina Arts. She described the experience as "utterly fascinating".

"(Jason) explains in the exhibit his use of contact microphones, and then creates and composes complex and in-depth sound explorations of these," she said.

"I especially was moved by the electric guitar being played by the wind in front of the enormous (scar) tree in Whitton, such a haunting piece.

"I really encourage people to see Soundscapes."