Final Project~

Project 2~Interview

For this project I interviewed Chris Young, whom I was surprised to discover I had a lot in common with, being of mixed race and the experiences one has regarding sense of self and the notion of identity.

Sound Walk: "What I Hear"

  When I had thought about the location of where I would do my sound walk,I thought a park in my neighborhood or a public garden. However, as I was leaving work on a Sunday afternoon a coworker had suggested to bike ride to Brooklyn Bridge Park from where we were in Chelsea. As we mounted the bikes and started the journey, I observed the crunch of the graveling pavement against the tires of the bicycle. I quickly realized that the sounds you hear biking in the street are slightly different from walking on the sidewalk. I noticed the blended texture of street sounds while riding: the sound of a car honk ringing loudly in my ear as I followed the path alongside traffic, the different music or radio station playing in each vehicle as I passed, the snippets of conversation I heard from people waiting to cross the street on the sidewalks, the "On your left" "Behind!" or subtle light high pitched sounds of bells ringing by other bike riders passing. Though the ride was peaceful, there wasn't a moment of silence or quiet riding from Chelsea to downtown lower east side. Perhaps it was the usual excited buzz of a late Sunday afternoon. 
  Throughout the ride, my friend wanted to stop in chinatown for bubble tea. While we walked I took in the soundmarks of Chinese and English conversation, children and others of all ages in the park playing and socializing. I picked up on sound signals such as shop owners yelling out prices for various fruits and vegetables, while two men and a crowd of people were arguing to stop a fight that was happening on a corner. We rode onto the Manhattan Bridge, where I heard the same keynote sounds of a few bike riders pass, the sound of the outdoor n/q/r train as it went by on the bridge and stopped every few mins. blended with sounds of passing cars on the same bridge. All the while listening to my coworker tell me about their life as we ride, I start to hear faint soulful guitar playing as we near the end of the bridge to the Brooklyn side. This made me smile at the privilege I felt to listen to beautiful music being played while bike riding on a bridge.I remember looking through the holes of the gated fence to see if I could see where the music was coming from but was unable to find it. Once we rode off the bridge onto the Brooklyn streets, we search for a spot to park our bikes. We get to a street corner where I look across and see a man on a chair playing the same soulful melody I heard on the bridge.This made me very excited, because I'm usually in my own world listening to whatever music is being played on my headphones. However, when you take a moment to step back and observe the medley of sounds in your city or area, it's simply refreshing and beautiful.

Project 1~Define a Space

Voyeurism~within Hunter College

Music: Human Sadness by Julian Casablancas

Partners:Jared Grove + Fabio Silva

Artist Statement

I am unsure of how I connect to the word artist. As it's something I have yet to consider myself to be. I enjoy all forms of art and media, whether it's music, films, television, books or photography. I would say I am stimulated and inspired by all outlets of creativity and different voices. Film watching, listening to music and reading are my greatest passions and hobbies that I've felt defined who I am over the years. I believe that these art forms in my opinion, are therapeutic. One of my favorite film makers/producers is Judd Apatow. From projects such as: Freaks and Geeks, Bridesmaids, This is 40, The Five Year Engagement, Girls, Love; to name a few, have been so relatable, hilarious, witty, real, and unapologetically truthful about the not always pleasant experiences we as humans face in life.

Judd Love

                            




   I believe Judd's work craft-fully uses comedy and raw unfiltered stories portrayed

by brilliant artists to encourage people to laugh, smile, cry, and cope with some of the real issues in the world that are often hard to deal with alone. I create some music in my spare time, I write poetry to release my expression, I am an avid obsessive film lover. Perhaps I am working towards working with music and film/entertainment, whether it's working with a production company or a PR firm to write and share my perspective on an artists' project, I am still narrowing it down. I hope that throughout this class, learning the technical skills that go into film making will further inspire me to be able to create and utilize these practices on my journey towards my career and life goals. Though it it still unclear what or how I wish to use media professionally, I strongly feel that I desire to be a part of creating media to inflict positivity, laughter, aid in coping with the emotional roller coaster of life and just sharing and creating stories that will make others even for a moment, feel good.