Thierry J.D. Bernard
Details
Department: School of Communication & Design
Campus: Saigon South Campus Vietnam
thierry.bernard@rmit.edu.vn
ORCID: 0000-0003-2842-4596
Open to
- Collaborative projects
- Membership of an advisory committee
About
Thierry has exhibited his work internationally through festivals and exhibitions, including Cities and Memories and the Barbican Centre's Feel the Sound multisensory exhibition (2025), where his work featured as part of artist Miyu Hosoi's Observatory Station installation. In Vietnam, he has also exhibited with leading contemporary art institutions, including Galerie Quynh (District 1) and The Factory Contemporary Arts Centre (District 2), both in Ho Chi Minh City.
As part of his practice-based PhD, PRS ASIA, conducted through the RMIT University Melbourne — School of Design, College of Design and Social Context. Thierry organised his first public presentation in April 2019 by staging a live sound performance with the Vietnamese metal band District 105. Later that year, he participated in the Super Tight exhibition at the RMIT Melbourne Hub Gallery, where he recreated the sonic atmosphere of Saigon's alleyways (hẻm) through a multichannel sound installation.
Thierry completed his practice-based PhD (PRS ASIA) Thesis/Project Title: More-Than-Noise: Listening with Saigon Soundscapes in June 2026. Building on this experience, he now looks forward to supporting and mentoring future practice-based PhD candidates in their research journeys, while also developing collaborative creative research works with his colleagues at RMIT Vietnam.
Awards & recognition:
- Long Term Service 10 & 15 years Anniversary RMIT Vietnam || 2024 RMIT Overall Winner, HDR Haiku Thesis Competition
Research fields
- 460707 Sound and music computing
- 360503 Digital and electronic media art
- 3604 Performing arts
- 360603 Performance art
- 36 Creative arts and writing
UN sustainable development goals
- 13 Climate Action
- 11 Sustainable Cities and Communities
- 10 Reduced Inequalities
- 14 Life Below Water
- 15 Life on Land
Academic positions
- Associate Lecturer
- RMIT Vietnam
- Design
- Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- 2008 – Present
Teaching interests
Design Studies, History and Theory of Design, Sound Studies, Sensory Studies & Atmosphere Research, Experimental Art & Design Practices.
Research interests
Keywords: Design Studies, Sound Studies, Acoustic & Spatial Design, Sensory Studies & Atmosphere Research, Experimental Art & Design Practices.
I define myself as an environmental noise artist whose practice brings together sound art, soundscape studies, sensory studies and atmosphere research to investigate how everyday environments are experienced through listening. My work explores the relationships between sound, place, and culture, examining how social behaviours, spatial conditions, and environmental noise shape the sensory identity of a location.
My research is grounded in long-term listening, field recording, soundwalking, and site-responsive practice. Rather than treating environmental noise as something to be eliminated, I approach it as a cultural and material phenomenon that reveals the rhythms, tensions, and interactions of everyday life. Through this practice, I investigate how sonic environments generate atmospheres and how these atmospheres influence our perception of space.
Much of my work focuses on the soundscapes of Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), Vietnam, where I explore the intersections between urban life, environmental noise, sensory experience, and cultural practices. My practice-based research considers sound as both a creative medium and a method of inquiry, using listening to reveal the often-overlooked relationships between human and non-human presence, environments, and the everyday.
