Returning A Sound (2004)

Since the 1940s, the island of Vieques, Puerto Rico, has served as a military testing ground for the U.S. Navy and NATO. Local residents and an international network of supporters mounted civil disobedience and protests, ultimately leading to the end of bombings and demilitarization in 2003. Allora & Calzadilla began exploring this story in 2000, creating works about the island's history. This video documents their early interest in how militarism and sound connect. In *Returning A Sound*, Homar, an activist and motorcycle driver, tours the island as a symbolic reclamation. He modifies his motorcycle’s muffler so it amplifies sound, transforming it into a trumpet that announces decontamination and recovery – a response to the devastating sounds of the past 60 years that defined life on Vieques.