Projects



KING TIDE Interventions + Parties 
Summer/Fall 2014 - 2015

Happy to be part of a growing group of artists and citizen scientists staging interventions + throwing parties around the annual King Tide events here in Portland, Maine. King Tide is a popular term for an especially high tide, the kind that happens a few times a year. The term is increasingly being used as a way for citizens to engage and address sea level rise in their communities. King Tides provide us with a glimpse into the future – both here in Portland, Maine and around the world.

The King Tide Events are a good chance for folks to come on out to observe and engage with the King Tides. We're creating art, sculpture, theater, creative documentary interviews and site specific temporary arts events to document and share the story of how the places which are flooded during King Tides will be flooded more often in the future - as sea levels rise. These are the places we inhabit, work in, and love. Stay tuned.

Inundated Observation Shack at King Tide BYO Chair Party July 14, 2014
12 Midnight-2am at Cove Street/Marginal Way (Portland, Maine)
Photo credit: Liz Bieber

The July 14th, 2014 King Tide BYO Chair Party took place at the corner of Cove Street and Marginal Way, in the East Bayside neighborhood. It was both an observation of the rising tide and flooding of Marginal Way and a free temporary intervention. Events included: street theater written by Megan Grumbling (performed by members of the theater collective Lorem Ipsum); puppetry by Blainor McGough (Executive Director of Mayo Street Arts); trailers of flood movies by Jan Piribeck (University of Southern Maine Professor of Digital Art and Foundations) screened in a temporary outdoor UHAUL truck cinema; experimental documentary audio based on interviews conducted with people already observing rising tides in Portland by Caroline Losneck and a sculptural Observation Shack made from salvaged and reclaimed materials created by me, fabricator Christopher Byron, and visual artist Kelly Rioux.


Inundated Intersection at King Tide BYO Chair Party July 14, 2014
12 Midnight-2am at Cove Street/Marginal Way (Portland, Maine)
Photo credit: Liz Bieber

King Tide BYO Chair Party July 14, 2014
Lorem Ipsum Theater (Portland, Maine)
Photo credit: Liz Bieber

Blainor McGough (Mayo Street Arts) Puppet wades in the water
at the King Tide BYO Chair Party July 14, 2014
Photo credit: Liz Bieber




King Tide Audio
As part of the event I was happy to interview five people that live and work in the East Bayside neighborhood that have witnessed the rising tides during King Tide event. The interviews included people that work at: UHaul, CrossFit, and Whole Foods - all in the East Bayside neighborhood. From these documentary interviews, I edited and produced 3 original audio tracks, which debuted at the night of the King Tide BYO Chair Party

I created this piece based on some interviews I did with Al Brule, a Hitch Mechanic that has worked at UHaul for over 25 years. He's seen rising waters and waves near UHaul during high tide events. Participants in the King Tide BYO Chair Party listened to Al’s audio when it played in the back of the Uhaul truck that we turned into a temporary outdoor cinema + installation.






Al Brule, UHaul Hitch Mechanic for 26 years. (Portland, Maine)
Photo credit: Caroline Losneck






U Haul Flooding at the King Tide BYO Chair Party July 14, 2014
Photo credit: Liz Bieber
 



Fyke Tide - interactive Documentary Installation
at the Camden International Film Festival 2013



I had great time debuting my new interactive documentary Fyke Tide, a collaborative installation with Christoph Gelfand (True Life Media) as part of the 2013 Camden International Film Festival (CIFF). The installation is a glimpse into our work documenting the 2013 elver eel fishing season in Maine. 

For CIFF, we installed a three-room fyke net portal into the rivers of Southern Maine, that people could walk into and through, stopping along the way to take in the sights, sounds and textures of the elver fishery and its environments. Using audio collage interviews with eel fishermen, and natural sounds from the woods and river banks, we assembled hundreds of pounds of nets (with the amazing assistance of Christopher Byron and Zack Barowitz), enclosed with found foliage, and added multiple projections from the project to create a cozy and mysterious world within a rocking party. We’re planning to show this installation again in Portland, Maine and beyond. Stay tuned friends.



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American Can Factory short film (a collaboration with True Life Media) 
Portland, Maine

Shot on a single day in March 2013 (after watching this building for years) prior to the demolition of the American Can Factory building. 

This building was the home of the American Can Co., which employed lots of Portland folks, many who can still recall family members that worked there. Back in the day, the factory workers cranked out  140-150 million cans a year, mostly for the sardine, fruit, vegetable and baked bean industries. 

Watch the American Can Factory film right here and turn up your speakers for an extra aural treat. When we filmed this, the building was a cacophony of the sounds of decay (dripping water, leaking roof, and creaking wood.) Stay tuned - this is part of  a series of three short films about buildings prior to their demolition called Buildings Lost. Note: this building has now been demolished. 

Filmed by Christoph Gelfand from True Life Media.
Sound by Caroline Losneck.



Thompson's Point short film (a collaboration with True Life Media)

Winter 2013


Another in the Buildings Lost shorts series. A collaboration with Portland, Maine based filmmaker  Christoph Gelfand (True Life Media).  Watch the film here

This is a deep homage to a building that played an important role in the train area near Thompson's Point. It was most recently used by a barn wood salvage company. Now, it's slated to be demolished as part of the Thompson's Point development.


Temporary Homes - 
Mixed Media Installation
DIRIGIMUS Cooperative on Thompson's Point
with MUSIC by RSO, Rural Ghosts and Samuel James
August 3, 2012






Temporary Homes is part of a larger body of work about the people living outside, in temporary camps adjacent to the Thompson’s Point area, including some people who lived in the old Hobo Jungle (which was destroyed when the Mercy Hospital Fore River Campus was built.) It’s a brief documentation of how the proposed Forefront development will impact the homes and lives of some of the people who make home in transient and mobile outdoor camps. Many of the folks living in the rough are understandably worried about the impact that the proposed Thompson’s Point plan will have on their lives. These are people who chose not to use the City of Portland’s shelter system, for various reasons having to do with everything from survivalist mentalities, to distrust, to the infinite search for freedom.

Many of the people living around Thompson’s Point know more about the natural world and place more than anyone else I’ve met. Their lives are characterized by constant movement – to a new site when theirs gets broken up, walking, and moving on despite the difficulties of living outdoors.

Although Temporary Homes is just a slim record of this place in time (there are so many stories to tell), it is also a call to re-imagine what could exist on Thompson’s Point instead of a development that most of us will have to get permission to use. 























Camp #1 Home Base (08:44)
Uncle Judy talks about life and times in the old Hobo Jungle, her disdain for liver, her appreciation for meatloaf, her friends, and more. 
*Special thanks to Judy, Rutger Miller (www.rutgermuller.nl), Anton Woldhek, Travis Morgan’s baby sound, Percy Duke, FXProSound and Erdie.





Camp #2 With Wings, Is a Friend (02:54)
An imaginary natural world.
The migratory birds, skunks, groundhogs, so-called “transient” bald eagles, foxes, deer, and New England cottontail bunnies that make the Thompson’s Point area their home. *Inspired by the ideas of JG, Judy and L. Featuring excerpts from the poem “Fear” by Mahoney.





Camp #3 Campfire Collage  (05:51)
Songs, dreams, concerns, stories & reflections about friendship around the campfire.
*Thanks to Nigel, JG, L, RfM for their generosity and humor. And last but not least, a huge special thanks to Mahoney for sharing his stories - I hope we all see you again real soon.




temporary home camp installation(outside the venue) 
by Christopher Wright
Contemplating our idea of home. An alternative for those living in the rough.


Thompson’s Point is a unique 27.56-acre crescent shaped historical and human ecosystem that would be lost if it gets demolished to build The Forefront, a mixed-use plan that includes: an event center/arena for the Red Claws, a hotel, a 732-car parking garage, 718 individual spaces of surface parking, a 120,000-square-foot office building, a 60,000-square-foot office building, a 24,000-square-foot sports medicine facility, a 6,000-square-foot restaurant, and maybe a small boat launch and consolation prize walking path. 

It’s no coincidence that DIRIGIMUS is an equally temporary venue that would be demolished once work begins on Thompson’s Point. 

Many musicians, creative folks and urban naturalists already know about the beauty and mystery of the Thompson’s Point peninsula. The area’s most recent history is rooted in Portland’s 19th and 20th century railroad, transport, and economy, but before that, it was likely a site of seasonal Native American importance, as its location at the mouth of the Fore River likely created an abundance of food, marine resources, and easy access to the water. Thompson’s Point was used over 100 years ago as a railroad maintenance yard and the two beautiful historic brick buildings still standing here today were built for that purpose. 

Woods and wild areas make up 6.53 acres of Thompson’s Point and the surrounding mud flats are about 4.14 acres. A whooping 19.9 acres of land will be “disturbed during construction” according to the plans. It might not sound like a big deal, but the land on Thompson’s Point is an important ecosystem surrounded by sensitive tidal mudflats with mussels, smelts and river life including New England cottontail bunnies and migratory birds. There are significant tree species on the western side of the peninsula. The big development plans call for burying contaminated materials, excavating the earth and increasing the non-point pollution discharge/run off. 

One thing that strikes me is that in the development proposal, the consultants describe that there will be no threat to any significant species of animals except for the “…occasional, transient bald eagles.” Strangely, the occasional, transient human beings will also be impacted. 

No part of this project would have been possible without the kindness, trust, generosity, and good natures of the people I have been fortunate to spend time with over the last year. It’s part tall tale, part truth & part urban legend, folks. Enjoy it while it lasts.


Extra Thanks to: Leif Curtis (DIRIGIMUS), Kelly Rioux, Zack Barowitz, Christopher Byron Wright, Michael Whittaker, Patrick Corrigan, Melinda Quinn, Blainor McGough, the groundhogs, cardinals and skunks living near the Fore River, and Dianne Ballon.




Investigation of Invisible on Thompson's Point
Portland, Maine


Utilitarian cart, Thompson's Point
Don't let anyone tell you that homelessness doesn't exist in the foodie paradise, hipster and ideal little Portland, Maine. If you live here, you know that there are folks in need of shelter, despite the best efforts of places like Preble Street, Milestone, Logan Place, and Florence House. Many people here are excluded from the City's shelter system, either  by choice or by circumstance,  or both -- and they make home in many of the 'vacant' undeveloped spaces on the  Portland peninsula.  A recent realization I've had is that many people living outdoors are feeling and are being continually squeezed out, as new development happens (the Mercy Hospital and Fore River Parkway) and is planned (the proposed Thompson's Point development). More people are seeking places to make camp, set up a tent, and have a fire pit to cook as these spaces are becoming increasingly uncommon. I'm worried about what will happen to people as their camps get moved, as they get pushed further and further out of the city limits (at the very same time that the need for shelter spaces increases.)

Listen to my new sound collage about some of the people currently living on Thompson's Point,  called The Invisible Neighborhood - The Making and Unmaking of Home:



I have recently been fortunate to spend some time with a few of people who live near Thompson's Point.  They are particularly worried about the impact that the Thompson's Point Development will have on their lives. The public discussion about this development, predictably, doesn't seem to include the needs of the people being most impacted. We hear about the 1,500 jobs created, the hotel and parking, the future home of the Red Claws,  the event center, and the transportation links (this part is good, at least) but not about what can be done to help find homes for the already displaced people. Can we have this discussion and come up with some specific plans?  Can we find homes for people at the same time we build new trails and developments?


Paths of the Invisible





Where to go next?



Personal History Project: "The Mistake on the Lake"
A Study of Cleveland & My Family's Roots 


River Terminal Railroad Co. Bridge
This is the historic River Terminal Railroad Bridge, in the Flats of Cleveland, which spans the Cuyahoga River. Cuyahoga is an Iroquois word for "crooked" - an apt description ("Crooked River") since the river's course switches often along it's course to Lake Erie. The Cuyahoga is about 100 miles from headwaters to its mouth in Cleveland. It's course was created by retreating glaciers, and during the last glacial retreat (over 10,000 years ago) the river's course shifted from south-flowing to north-flowing. (And we think man-made changes are the only thing that shape the landscape!)

The poor old Cuyahoga River is said to have caught on fire as many as thirteen times in recorded history, the most recent being the June 22, 1969. That particular fire  captured the nation's attention and helped to spark (so-to-speak) the modern environmental movement. I was born in 1975 and never knew about the river's geological or industrial history until I studied it in college.

Recently, I discovered that my great-grandpa John Gannon, worked for the River Terminal Railroad, which undoubtedly contributed to the environmental degradation of the river and surrounding watershed. The River Terminal Railway Co., was a Class I "Switching" or "belt line." It served as a vital link between Cuyahoga River Valley industries and the main-line railroads into Cleveland. The railway was incorporated in 1909 as a subsidiary of the Corrigan-McKinney Steel Co. to service two small blast furnaces on the west side of the Cuyahoga.

Then in 1935, the River Terminal Railway became a subsidiary of Republic Steel Corp, with 1.5 miles of main track connecting Republic's two open-hearth blast furnaces on east side of the river. Back then, my Grandfather's railroad used sidings, locomotives, and freight cars to pick up iron ore from Republic Steels' docks and move it along to interchange points with other railroads who could transport it to other parts of the state. From these interchange points, the railway would transport coal back to the churning mills. In 1936, the River Terminal Railway purchased the first diesel locomotive in Cleveland. An interesting piece of labor history occurred in 1944, when a dispute over safety regulations flared up and 140 workers went on a week-long strike over Republic's suspension of a conductor, forcing the total shutdown of Republic's mills (which employed 4,600 people, a huge amount!) I'm not sure what my great-grandfather's involvement (if any) in this strike was.  My hope is that my research (that's you, Grandma) will help me find out.

By 1972, the railroad was moving 120 carloads of coal a day and 1.5 million tons of iron ore, as well as molten steel and finished products from one section of Republic's plant to another. The belt line also served chemical plants and other industries along the Cuyahoga River.

The beautiful rusty bridge.


Another view.
In 1983 the River Terminal Railway Co. became a subsidiary of the LTV Corp. as it remained in 1995, employing some 200 Clevelanders, including aunts and uncles and extended family members. This is how history comes full circle: the railroad bridge that my great-grandfather Gannon worked on in the 1930's and 1940's was the very same bridge that transported ore and coal to the steel mills that my family worked in later on and the same bridge that my brother and I would smash pennies on in the 1980's. I look forward to learning more about the bridge  featured here and the railroads that my great-grandfather worked on...and  I intend to post more about this topic in the future.


Portland Sound Map

I am collaborating with photographer Cole Caswell on a massive multi-media sound map of the Portland peninsula. How will this look? Here is a teaser called Portland Sound Map - Lost Spaces Trestle.

I imagine a multi-media and interactive map of Portland that allows the listener to click around for regularly (daily? weekly? or monthly?) updated sounds (that are unique to each neighborhood, bioregion, or street.) Each "installment" might be broadcast on it's own, and then added to the larger Portland Sound map where seasonal, cultural, physical, social,  and who-knows-what other kind of changes will be recorded over time. This project addresses how change isn't limited to the eyes, and that it is possible to create a full-blown map of a place with sounds. (It is a bit like how many species of animals do it.)  A re-imagining of mapping. 

Longer term plans include making it possible for others to contribute the sounds in their neighborhoods and taking it on the road while in transit. I've always liked maps & this is the natural progression of mapping into sound. Stay tuned for updates.

Getting around to completing some audio from the Portland SoundMap. Listen to Sign Graveyard here. 

Art at Work 
Portland, Maine 

I have been doing audio documentation for two projects of Art at Work: Meeting Place & Portland Works. The first is an audio slide show (watch it here) created with Director Marty Pottenger & photographer Tonee Harbert about the very first session of Portland Works. It was almost an unbelievable collection of folks coming together in the same room at the same time -- 15 "silent" community leaders & 15 City workers -- for a crash-course Portland history lesson with the talented Bridget McCormick from the Maine Historical Society (titled Portland: From Dinosaurs till Now) and a poetry workshop by Betsy Sholl the former Poet Laureate of Maine. Poems were made & discussions happened and it's all pretty interesting stuff. Art at Work is a national initiative that aims to improve municipal government through strategic arts projects with municipal employees, elected officials and local artists. Portland is the pilot city. More about my involvement to come.


Scrap Yard Documentary - Work in Progress

Portland's Bayside neighborhood is a threatened species. 

Over the past few years, a Wild Oats store moved in, eventually shutting the local Natural Food Store down, then a massive Whole Foods store moved in, eventually shutting down the Wild Oats store. The city has big plans for development in Bayside, and there is on on-going effort to reduce all signs of it's industrial past.

One scrapyard has already been relocated from Bayside and the last hold-out is the E. Perry Iron and Metal Co., which has been in the metal business for over one hundred years. The city has repeatedly attempted to relocate E. Perry from Bayside, but so far, E. Perry has held it's ground, despite being located right next to the Whole Foods! E. Perry is a family affair, run by two sons and their father Rusty.

Both sons never imagined that they'd be in the metal scrap business -- both went to college and have advanced degrees. Both are now running E. Perry, weighing metal, managing the day to day operations of the yard.

What is to become of E. Perry? Will it remain in bayside, serving customers from all over New England? Or will it be forced out of the rapidly changing Bayside?


Walk from Jackson Heights, Queens to LaGuardia 2012

What do you do when your friend moves to a cool neighborhood that happens to be near-ish to LaGuardia Airport? WALK THERE
Although I haven't yet fully convinced my urban exploration team members to come along, I WILL make this happen. 

I've plotted it on GoogleMaps & in my mind...so once this epic walk happens, I'll post the audio visual documentation here.