WBC. You are tuned in to WBCA-102.9 FM, Boston's community, radio station, I'm your host, Tommy Shenifield, and this is Observation Room Boston, or Orb, a show where we speak to local artists, organizers, and more about spaces and places in Boston and beyond. And today, I'm very lucky to be joined by two artists who are working on a project called Frequencies, Hyde Park. We have Allison Tannenhouse, a glitch artist who specializes in trippy op art and percussionist, composer, new media artist, and more who creates multi-sensory performances and public art installations. And again, they are working on a project called Frequencies, Hyde Park, here in Boston. I'm sure you're very busy in the midst of working on that, so thank you for taking the time to come on WBCA. And thank you for being here. How are the two of you doing? We're doing well. Thank you so much for having us. It's really exciting to be here. Great to have you. So for those who haven't heard of Frequencies, Hyde Park, or maybe haven't heard of this type of installation work more broadly, could you tell our listeners what the project is? Sure. So Frequencies, Hyde Park is the latest addition of a public art installation that Maria and I have been working on for, I guess, a couple years now? Yeah, we've done different iterations. They're always hyper-local, which is kind of the crux of the appeal, we think. And so essentially, we crowdsource media from a neighborhood, whether that be photos, videos, sounds, and then with our own signature styles, Maria doing audio and I do visual. We process it. We make it not all the way unrecognizable, but we add our own flair. So it's a mix. So there's some abstraction, artistic license involved, but it becomes a colorful and dynamic representation of the neighborhood. That's a mural. We have a soundtrack that accompanies it. It's all custom. It's really upbeat, vibrant, fun, open to the public. And this time it's going to be for two nights in a row to December 13th and 14th at Roundhead Brewing Co. It's going to be outside, so bundle up. And the whole idea of it is that we are celebrating the seemingly mundane parts of a neighborhood, but yet things that are really signature to the neighborhood and captured by the people who live there, who work there, who go there. And then we give it our own little twist and meld it together to kind of reflect back what they provided us and create. Something new, but that honors the spirit of where it's taking place to kind of show the lovely and magical little moments that can emerge and highlight how awesome it is to be there, in this case, Hyde Park. Well, it's great to hear. And so, Alison, you're primarily a visual artist, I understand, so you're working more on the visual side of this. And then, Maria, you're creating the soundtrack for the pieces, is that correct? Yeah, that's correct. So I'm trained as a contemporary classical percussionist and composer. And I also own the company MF Dynamics that's producing the project. So my hats include the kind of getting the work, getting it out to the neighborhood, inviting the neighborhood, and then creating the soundtrack, which I then hand off to Alison to kind of synchronize the beautiful visuals that she's glitched from the media itself. So, I am currently taking the first pass at the Hyde Park media to try to find out all of the sonic elements. We create memories when we combine sound and visuals together. So we believe this is a really special project in that way, because we get to take those things that people hear and see every day and remix them and combine them all together. So all of the soundtracks, so we've done this in Alston Brighton. This will be doing in Hyde Park. We've also gone to Wichita, Kansas. Soon we'll be going to Broward County, Florida. And then we'll come back to the Fenway neighborhood next year. So all of the soundtracks sound completely different. And it really, because it depends on the sounds that I'm getting and then what kind of additions I'm making and how I put them together to create form, to create dynamicism, to create tempo and feel. So we're really excited because we never know what the final is going to look and sound like. So it's fun to be in the weeds right now as we're talking to you. Yeah. And speaking from those weeds you're in, because a little bit of time has passed since the open call for video and sound and images. So now I imagine you're in the process of working through all of that. Have there been any surprises in what you've, what's been submitted? I think it's always a surprise. Like there's, it's in a good way, kind of scary. We're like, are we going to get a lot of submissions? What's the quality them going to be like? But I think at this point, we, you know, we can keep the faith that we're going to get some really cool stuff. And I think part of the delight of this project is people may put something in that they're like, I don't know, this is just like my friend lowing is lowing is long or whatever, like it could be something super random. And they maybe think it's mundane, but we're able to extract a really cool rhythm or a pattern or some motion or color. And so having people trust that we can do something really magical with what they create. And I think it gets easier each time we do it because we kind of like Marie and I are more accustomed to working together. And we kind of like are less stressed about making something amazing. We know that we can do it. And we've had, we have had this awesome array of contributions. We had 18 different organizations and people who gave it from five strong candle company to my little playhouse, the daycare center to Hyde Park main streets, the switch co-op, and then just people heard about it. Yeah, residents who heard about it and are like, hey, this is my favorite hair salon. This is a placard honoring the first spot where women voted. These are kids playing in a playground, canoeing street fairs. So we get such an array of material. And then we have the freedom to interpret it and recombine it. What I'll share in conjunction with what she's talking about is that what I think is set the Hyde Park contributions apart from when we were in Kansas and for when we were in Elson Brayton is that there was a lot of warmth and togetherness that kind of exuded from the media. So there were a lot of group pictures, even like city representatives involved. And I could feel the pride oozing out of a lot of the photographs and videos that we got, which was really cool. And also a lot of music contributions that are really, really cool. So I'm excited to get in there and remix them. So just and maybe my studio is based in Hyde Park. So this is very close to me. This was funded by the neighborhood activation grant from the city of Boston Arts and Culture department. So I guess I feel the connection to all of the media that we're getting to. So it feels very much kind of, I'm feeling a little warmth for this iteration of frequencies. Also, and possibly in connection to that, we're doing it in winter. So we're kind of wanting to express the warmth to bring the people together to kind of enjoy these long nights using our light music. Yeah. And that first iteration of the project ran from November to February back in 2021, 2022, the Elston Brayton edition. So I like that's a good point that sometimes when it gets dark at four or five, you might as well take advantage of the darkness to project some things. Exactly. Exactly. Yep. We have excuses for us to go out. I think when I get started at four, you just don't want to do anything, but I think to stay mentally positive and healthy and to remember how supportive our communities are. It really brings us joy. Allison and I and my company to kind of be able to produce these types of activations to just allow people to be together and experience art together. And so at the frequencies, Alston Brayton, the first edition, is it correct that that's when the two of you first collaborated? That was our most, I think, realized collaboration and certainly most extensive. We'd kind of had some warm-up collabs prior to that. So we met actually at the Ed Portal and Alston Brayton a couple of years before that, Maria was giving a talk on art entrepreneurship, music entrepreneurship. I was in the audience. I was like, this woman is amazing. She totally is like on the same wavelength. Love what she's up to. She's so active and positive and innovative. And I remember chatting with her after and thinking like, she's such a big deal. She's never going to get back to me. And meanwhile, she's like, who is like, I can't believe Allison's reaching out to me. We're just totally impressed with each other. And we didn't have a clear idea yet of what to do together. But we knew that there was this energy that there had to be something that we could do. And so actually at the beginning of COVID, we had planned to get together for coffee and we're like, let's just maybe we'll book this in a couple of weeks when things have blown over. Instead, Maria just was doing these little experimental music pieces. They weren't very long. Were they 30 seconds? Yeah, 30 to 60 seconds. They were, yeah, they're just little short experiments. And she was sending them to me. And I was creating little videos for them. And we're like, okay, like, we are clicking. This is working. And it was really playful and fun. And there wasn't any, you know, deadline in mind or any client or anything. So it was just purely for the love of the game. And we're like, okay, we got this. And then, Maria had a concert, I don't know if you want to talk more about Project Daydream a little bit. But anyway, she did something that was super cool, that was meditative at the cycle on the best or send for the arts. And I provided some video art to be projected in that. And again, we're like, this is just like, bananas, how well our stuff flows together. And it was such an honor to see, because she, Maria's production company is freaking amazing. And so it was just great to see the realization of our visions coming together into reality. And so we're like, let's keep doing this. So yeah, so then the frequencies came up and we devised that idea. And because we were, you know, on a personal level, we had met there, we're like, okay, this is like the perfect place to like really like start this up in a big way. And yeah, it's just kind of built from there. The community has really appreciated it. I think something that I try to do with my video, especially as a lot of my work is very abstract by nature, but I try to dial it back just a tiny bit so that when people come to see the actual event, they can point and be like, that's my clip, like that's my cat, that's my car, whatever it is, like, I think having that little spark of recognition really connects us and shows that like we really honor their material. And even though we're putting our own spin on it, that it's really essential that the content of it is important as much as the reconfiguration of it. Yeah, I love that perspective you're bringing to it, where it's bringing the community together, where they can look at this and say I was involved in this project, it's something that represents my community and I'm playing a role in it. And I like how in this project and previous projects, both of you have worked on, there's such an element of collaboration between different artists and with different communities and locations, you know, again, from Alston to Hyde Park to Wichita to soon enough, Florida with this particular project, how do you, how does that element of collaboration inspire your work and how did you come to foreground that and what you do? I guess, Maria, if you wanted to start. Sure. I think I've always had like big dreams and visions. You know, I've always been the person to be like, wouldn't it be cool if we projected massive videos on buildings and then played music and then everyone had a dance party. And I think I learned, you know, a decade ago that with big vision comes big teams. And I think why Alston and I have gotten along so well as I think the best collaborative efforts come when there's like deep respect and also space for each other and just really almost an over communication strategy. Alston and I have no trouble like texting, emailing, 10 times. We're also really just supportive of each other as humans. And I think I try to cultivate that energy in all my projects. And then we also try to bring that into the community. So, you know, everybody who's participated in frequencies Hyde Park has gotten emails from us, a lot of thank yous. And then everyone's going to get special swag. We made t-shirts are going to get light up ones. They're going to get candles from five strong, some biscuits from Effie's cookie company. And, you know, we're really it's about just everybody like this platform to just everybody to shine. And I get just really excited when, you know, when Alston's successful, when my collaborators are successful, when the neighborhood feels that warmth and that success. So I think it has been for both of us. Alston collaborates with a lot of different people. We both have a lot of different projects going on. I think it's because it brings us joy and then joy sparks more creativity, more ideas. And also, you know, the diving into the unknown, like when you have more brains on a project or when you bring in the community, like again, some of the content we got for this project like is, you know, we've never gotten footage from a parade before, but Hyde Park Main Streets sent that to us. And it's so cool because again, it's a joyful and exciting. So, so that concept of like, oh, like just even footage of this, like people dancing and people kind of running down the street in Hyde Park, like that is bringing me so much excitement. So it's helping me to vision for what's next and what could be. I, I do think that the most the strongest art, especially in the public space is really made with the community, not just for it. So I think we're really excited to, you know, then just host a party, like really on December 13th and 14th, it's just going to be a celebration of, of everybody who's contributed and then everybody who just comes out to see it. There'll be some live music with our partners at Departure Arts and Bamsfest. So we'll just, it'll be just a really exciting, supportive space for each other to engage with the art and to, you know, maybe we all leave thinking about what could be next because of the experience at the events. And if anyone is just tuning in, this is WBCA 102.9 FM. I'm your host, Tommy Shenifield, joined by Allison Tannenhouse and Maria Finkelmeyer of the Project Frequencies, Hyde Park, a community powered audio visual mural showcasing Boston's Hyde Park neighborhood. It's going to be December 13th and 14th. That's a Friday and a Saturday from 5 to 10 p.m. at the A Roundhead Brewing Company. And that's at one Westinghouse Plaza in Hyde Park right here in Boston. And again, thank you for being here because I know you, I'm sure you've got a lot of work cut out for yourselves on this project. So yeah, thank you again. One thing I'm curious about it is if anyone who's listening is interested in the kind of work you do with Glitchard and sound and different kinds of art installations, what advice would you have for them for getting started? Because I know it can feel kind of daunting if you're involving, you know, city governments or other institutions. And, you know, you kind of have a responsibility to a public you might be helping represent. Where do you, where does somebody begin and in what, in what you do? I think what Maria was saying earlier about when you have a bigger vision, you need a bigger team, I think just and how our work began, we just had a vision reached out, we had enthusiasm, you're just light, respectful. And it may, you're going to get better over time, like don't expect that you're going to nail it all at once. We're always learning from each iteration that we do, we're like, oh, we should have two projectors here or we should do bigger speakers or whatever it is. I mean, that's kind of the nitty gritty of it. But we're always learning and we, I think keeping the open mindedness of like other people may know things that we don't know, or maybe really bet like better at something than we are. So I think just being enthusiastic and being open to learning and trying and reaching out to people, if someone's not receptive to you, then they're probably not the person you want to work with. So don't be discouraged and just don't be free to ask. I mean, that's how Maria and I started work together, which was like, Hey, should we do something? And we didn't even know what it would be yet. And look at us now. Yeah, I think just asking around and just believing in yourself and believing that other people will hopefully be able to help you because often they do. Yeah, I think I'm just going to second that real quick, Alison, and even on the other side of like the production and funding part of it and partnerships, like when I first moved to Boston, I reached out to the city officials to say, how do I get work funded? What are these grants? How do I write a grant? Like, and then our partners at Roundhead Brewing Company, you know, they're neighbors, like, Hey, we have, we're artists, we'd love to use your space. And it's, it's remembering that even though organizations or, or, you know, funding sources, they seem really big and scary, they're all run by people. And so you just have to kind of feel brave enough to reach out and then artist to artist collaboration the same way. And most often, if you say, Hey, I really like your work, that person's going to feel really grateful. And then say, Oh, I like your work too. So, you know, most often it's a really positive energy. And it's, again, like Alison said, just the bravery to reach out. That's great. Great advice. Thank you. And I think that's the key part is just remembering world. We're all people receiving emails, calls, other things. And, you know, worst case scenario, somebody doesn't get back to you. But oftentimes, they eventually will. And then maybe great collaborations will come out of it, like between the two of you. I'll second that there's a lot of great resources through the, the, you know, the arts and culture office of Boston and the mass cultural council and all these different resources. I feel like we're in a very fortunate area for public support for the arts. So Maria, you said that your studio is in Hyde Park or you're based in Hyde Park? I am. Yes. I'm actually at the Westinghouse Plaza space. So very close to round head brewing company. And I've been here a few years. Cool. And then Alison, you, you work or live nearby as well? Oh, no. Really. I'm in Somerville, but that's nearby. That is so nearby. Yeah. So nearby in Metro area, but I've gone out there. And I think what was really fun too is that Marie and I went and we did a site visit just to do kind of like more accurate measurements, as well as kind of get a taste of round head as not only a venue, but as a content source. So we did our own little mini tour and took our own samples. So we are also contributors to the media, but yeah, we roll up our sleeves and we get in there and we grab some stuff too. So yeah, so I've I've officially been there more than once, but no, but I'm Somerville based, but I think I love having Maria be part of it so close, but I think kind of the beauty of this project is that we can go somewhere like Wichita, where we aren't natives to it and still be really included and welcomed. And then also we get our own sense of the area and kind of our own investment in it so we can feel part of it and hopefully radiate that out to the people who are there too. Yeah, Alison, I thought you were going to say you lived in New Hampshire or Maine or something. But Somerville is I think that falls under local. Yes. I agree. I agree. I think that they're by public transit. So I think that's a good litmus test. Excellent. So for both of you being local to the area, how has that greater Boston community inspired your work? I think Boston, the greater Boston community, it's it is fundamentally a very supportive space and I think there is a lot happening, right? We have a lot of these little nooks and communities and you can go to like Boston cyber arts and see a really like gritty, almost feeling underground experience. And then you can go to a huge festival that's downtown or in seaport and then you can go to your local, you know, your favorite restaurant. I feel like everywhere here, there is a lot of people thinking deeply and working hard. And I think that is really special, right? To this city and a lot of there's just a lot of there's a lot of things going on. So I'm never bored. I'm never like, oh, where's my next piece of inspiration going to come from? Because I can just get on the tee, go somewhere and kind of see and feel what's happening. I also feel like the while our cold winters are, you know, they they maybe let us hibernate a little bit. They also for me are very inspiring, kind of the darkness and while I'm a sound artist, like I'm obsessed with light and designing light and designing video and designing kind of these like immersive multi sensory experiences. So these months kind of get me excited because I weirdly love the darkness. So I feel inspired by it. And I feel excited to kind of light it up. There's so much to do. And there, there's a, I think, real desire to have a community in that it's not. I don't feel like it's very gatekeeping. I really appreciate that I can go to events and talk to people and end up finding a collaborator for something that's happening or people can come and talk to me at an event. And I'm, you know, we're now Instagram friends. And, you know, so I think, I think there's a really, as we were saying, a supporter community and that it's really cool that kind of, once you like have the, the audacity, the, when you're, you know, take the bravery, just approach somebody, you'll, you'll get good results and that there's, I think we all kind of, we want to connect with each other, we want to grow our community. We're not just doing stuff for ourselves that we really want this to be something that connects and inspires and hopefully, you know, people who come to our events will want to put on their own productions or be part of our future ones. We have folks who have, who are, you know, coming to not necessarily every frequency is coming out to Wichita, but the local ones, you know, have made it or I'll see it shows again and again. And then I've met some younger artists who all that included when I have a group show coming up because I'll find out they'll tell me about their work. So I think just like the openness to grow and connect is really strong and it's not like this separation of like the people who do stuff and the people who observe it. I think there's like a real conglomeration of that and it's a lot more open. And who knows what new collaborations will come out of people meeting at frequencies Hyde Park, which I love that. Yeah. That's the hope. That's the dream. And again, for anyone just tuning in, frequencies Hyde Park is a crowdsourced audio visual mural that's going to be at Roundhead Brewing Company, one Westinghouse Plaza in Hyde Park, December 13th and December 14th from 5 to 10 p.m. It's open to the public. Is any kind of registration required or can people just show up or how does that work? We are encouraging registration just so we can be prepared. So we have an event bright page up that you are welcome to go to the website if you would like to. Yeah. So I'm sure if people search for frequencies Hyde Park, it'll come up. Yeah. Definitely. And do the two of you have websites or other ways that people could learn more about your work? Go ahead, Maria. Sure. I'm at www.mfdynamics.com. And I am at aliceandtenanthouse.com and you can also check us both out. We're pretty active on Instagram. I think that's like our main platform. Yeah. So perfect. Thank you. We're just about out of time, unfortunately. But in just a sentence or two, Maria and Alison, could you tell me hope you have for how the unveiling of this installation will go? I hope people feel proud. I hope people feel delighted and represented, included, and are just in awe of what we can all do together. Well, I'm sure those hopes will come true. This has been observation room Boston with your host, Tommy Shenifield on WBCA 102.9 FM, your community radio station. And I've been joined by Alison Tannenhouse and Maria Finkelmeyer to discuss their project frequencies Hyde Park, which will be on display December 14th and 13th, 13th and 14th in the Hyde Park neighborhood at Roundhead Brewing Company in Boston. Thank you and hope to see you there. [Music]
New media artists Maria Finklemeier and Allison Tanenhaus are developing FREQUENCIES: HYDE PARK, a community-powered audio-visual mural to showcase the diverse sounds and sights of the Boston neighborhood. Learn about the origins of this project and past iterations in Allston-Brighton and Wichita, KS. Maria and Allison discuss using crowdsourced video and audio clips to highlight the "seemingly mundane" elements of a community, and share advice for artists interested in collaborative, community-based work.
FREQUENCIES: HYDE PARK will be on display December 13th and 14th from 5–10PM at Roundhead Brewing Company, One Westinghouse Plaza, Hyde Park, Boston. The event is open to the public, but registration is requested. https://www.eventbrite.com/e/frequencies-hyde-park-tickets-1091192087909
