Above is some footage of the Performancy Forum XV presented by Panoply Performance Laboratory at SUPERFONT’s Public Summer series in Industry this summer. Look out for SUPERFRONT’s upcoming

Although we had a plethora of rain this summer, we are grateful for all the support we received in the Public Summer performance series this summer. Along with Gia Wolff and Ethan Eunson-Conn’s project, the Panoply Performance Laboratory presented us with Performancy Forum XV. I had the opportunity to ask the performers a few questions about the performance they shared at SUPERFRONT’s Public Summer events.

How did the artist involved with the Performancy Forum exhibition come together?

 PERFORMANCY FORUM [http://www.panoplylab.org/performancy.html] is a semi-monthly exhibition of interdisciplinary, experimental performance work curated by The Panoply Performance Laboratory (PPL)’s [http://www.panoplylab.org] co-directors (Brian McCorkle and I). It’s an open, public platform, anyone is welcome to make a proposal, we form each exhibition around who and what work comes to our attention. We are open to a multiplicity of concerns, but primarily focus on theoretically rigorous work; the PF is about showing the work itself but it’s also about why it’s being made. The PF for SUPERFRONT brought together a piece called Starched Spiral by Lindsey Drury and Lorene Baboushian [http://www.drearysomebody.com], solo work by bassist and composer Jason Anastasoff, and an excerpt of a collaborative work organized by PPL (including Natasha Missick, Michael Newton, Adrian Owen, and Andrew Whipple).

What inspired the idea for the Performancy Forum exhibition?

For a couple of years Brian and I were in residence at Surreal Estate exchanging live/work space for programming the performance space there (this space has since been shut down). While we had access to that former coffin-factory space, we wanted to bring artists together from the fringes of music, contemporary dance, avant-garde theatre, performance and video art –especially those artists whose practices defy such medium-based categorization– and share work and discuss our aesthetic, political, and practical concerns outside of capitalist/free market economic structures. We are not a gallery, venue, or organization, so the work can be entirely post-product, free to audiences/participants, etc. Over the summer, we’ve been inspired by spaces like Industry City and BOB the Pavilion to organize PFs outdoors in collaboration with architectural and public art projects. This winter, we’ll be entering a residency at University Settlement [http://www.universitysettlement.org/programs/view/6] so we have great hopes for the  project’s evolution and potential meshing with their fantastic Salon Series.

What is the creative process for your performance work? 

Ah ha, well this takes us in a different interview direction entirely…I am a performance artist/librettist/organizer of projects and work in a lot of different disciplines. Primarily I work through a process of public engagement to develop texts around an ideological conflict, or paradox. I then collaborate with composer Brian McCorkle and a gathered team of artists and other individuals create operas, videos, interactive episodes, conferences/symposiums, installations, and other types of projects. The PERFORMANCY FORUM is a big part of my practice, I am always extremely influenced by the work and ideas of participating artists, and the line between organizing one of “my own” projects and organizing an exhibition can be blurry. I also often get to choose the subject, space, and so on for the PFs, which end up delicately rinsed in my subjective interests no matter how hard I try to keep them “organic” (by using that word I guess I’m saying that my subjective interests are herbicides, selecting certain ideas/plants and killing others…) 

Did the artists involved work collectively to come up with the idea  for Performancy Forum?

The very first PF was part of Arts in Bushwick’s [http://artsinbushwick.org] SITE Fest. Each one has been different in terms of how involved artists are in organizing the event, contributing factors to this include whether it’s an examination of a particular idea or if it’s work responding to a particular space, whether it’s a highly publicized event with a large number of participating artists or a casual gathering, etc.

Why did you choose this exhibition to share in the Superfront Public Summer artist series?

The site is amazing, we wanted to use the acoustics of the buildings on either side of the loading dock alley and we asked artists who would appreciate and be able to really use the sites spatial and aural elements. We really appreciate the opportunity to participate in the Public Summer series, despite the rain, it was a great time!

I just want to once again thank everyone who came out to support Public Summer 2011! [http://newyork.superfront.org/2011/08/public-summer-wrap-up/]

Portaali by Gia Wolff

This week the Public Summer artist series continues with a project in architecture and sound. Gia Wolff, an architectural designer, will be teaming up with Ethan Eunson-Conn for a piece entitled Poortali. Poortali means Portal in Finnish, it is a reference to the Scandinavian people who settled in Sunset Park in the 1800s. Ethan is a sound artist and filmmaker working both in NYC and Los Angeles. His work includes DJing, sound design projects for larger film productions, along with the production of his own short films. I recently had the opportunity to ask Gia a few questions:

How did you get involved with architecture?

I’ve been involved in architecture ever since I can remember.  My maternal grandfather was an architect, and so are my father and his brother. These are just my most immediate relatives who are architects.  I guess I can safely say architecture is in my blood.  But I think my real involvement with architecture started in Los Angeles, where I grew up.  I would spend countless nights cruising just looking at the city.  LA is a strange place for architecture – it’s hard to tell what’s real.  You can be at the top of a canyon looking at the vast city and think, “Man, there’s so much!”  And the next second you’re down the hill on some residential street and realize you’re in a preserved 1950’s film set, but it’s a real street. Vacillating between the real and unreal-real, I know has played a significant role in how I think about architecture.

I understand you are currently working at Pratt Institute, what are your teaching/research interests?

I teach first year undergraduate architecture studio, so it’s less about my own research and more about fundamentals for a first year architecture student.  I am interested in performative architecture – how spaces function and how people function in spaces – and try to use that pedagogy as a way to teach fundamentals.  For example, one of the big challenges for a young student is to learn scale.  I often refer to the body as a measuring device because it instantly gives students perspective and helps them learn the difference between 10 feet and 30 feet, which surprisingly, is not that easy at first.

In addition to teaching at Pratt, I am also a partner in an experimental architecture program called +FARM.  We just returned from spending a week at a 300 acre sheep and cattle farm in western New York where we built a movable chicken coop with five architecture students. I’m really fascinated by the stories of architects who used to travel with their clients, not only forging their own personal relationships, but also developing a communal interest in what the project is.  Our program is not quite like this, but in a way it takes lessons from what it means to build relationships between the architect, the client, and in our case the student.  We hope that this way of working will help to make design less esoteric and instead more immediate, more innate.

What is your approach to architecture, more specifically in terms of what you feel the role of the architect is in the broader social and cultural context?

This is something I am still trying to define, as I don’t think the traditional role of an architect is the same as what it used to be.  I don’t think I’m experienced enough to really say what I think that should be, but I am trying to look to other disciplines for influence and forge my own path.  I suspect I’ll only really know this answer in retrospect.  So for now, perhaps the best answer is to say that I think the architect, in a broad sense, is proactive in any capacity.

Could you share a little bit about the piece you will showing on Sunday?

The buildings in Sunset Park are amazing because of their size, beauty, repetition, and utilitarianism.  What excites me most about them is that this is one of the few places left in the city where you can still wonder what they could be. The buildings are quite monolithic, but somehow they seem more fragile, like skeletons.  On the one hand, their bones remind us of their history, but they are not bound to their past. Instead, they provide a framework to think about the future.  The site of the installation is within a three-sided courtyard between two buildings. The installation attaches to the buildings as if creating a new fourth wall. Hanging off the existing infrastructure, it uses a projector to mimic the repetitive pattern of the building facades onto a swath of fabric.  The image of the façade is not static like the real buildings, but over time morphs into potential scenarios displaying future possibilities.

Poortali will be this Sunday (8/21) at Industry City from 4-9pm! There will also be a performance from the artist collective Panoply. All are welcome!

This weekends Public Summer 2011 event features Shinkoyo, a Brooklyn and Oakland based media collective. Their performance this Sunday, entitled SOUNDCORRIDORS, will be a sound event utilizing the acoustics of the courtyard space in Industry City for sonic performance. Central to their project is spacialized sound. Recently, I had the opportunity to ask one of the organizers of the SOUNDCORRIDORS project, Doron Sadja, the following questions:

The artists involved are all new york based sound artists whose work addresses spacial sound.

All artists are work primarily in music/sound.  Some do visual work as well, but there will be no visuals in this event except this wonderful space

I think a lot of sound artists are really fascinated with architecture – everything from how you can create space with sound to how space can interact with sound.  Sound is a physical vibration: the shape and size of the room, the construction materials, even historical context – all change the physical and psychological characteristics of sound and its perception.

I also happen to have a personal interest in architecture – I spent a little time at SciArc in Los Angeles after studying music in undergrad – thinking that I may want to pursue a career in architecture.  I also used to work at the Schindler House in LA helping to organize a series of music events in the historic home of architect Rudolph Schindler.

The space!  I checked out the space and totally fell in love – its a really unique space – especially in a city where we’re used to being crammed into tiny tiny spaces.  I have yet to test the acoustics of the space, but Im sure its really weird!

Well, its different for every artist involved.  However, the speaker placement will be essential to the event – and will dictate how each artist will be able to perform in and activate the space.  I hope to get in to the space early enough in the day to do some acoustical tests to see what works before settling on where the speakers will be.

Well, all the listed projects were living/working/performance spaces.  This is very different in that it is a temporary performance space – and what happens there will be very focused.
Its also considerably larger than any of these other spaces – the first thing I did when I came to the loading dock in sunset park was try to figure out how many West Niles could fit in there   I think around 6….

All are welcome to come out and take part in this unique and fascinating performance this Sunday August 14th in Industry City, Sunset Park!

http://doron.sadja.com/

http://shinkoyo.com/festivals/soundcorridors/

This summer SUPERFRONT is hosting events in the public summer pavilion, Weightless Pull, designed by architecture CO. Public Summer is a continuation of last years events hosted in the backyard of SUPERFRONT’s storefront location on Atlantic Avenue in Bedford-Stuyvesant; however, this year’s activities are taking place in a 3,000 sq ft courtyard in Industry City, Sunset Park. Since SUPERFRONT’s inception in 2008, the organization has been committed to providing a space for experimental architecture and public arts. SUPERFRONT is committed to bringing architecture into a broader socio-cultural context. This weeks events continue with a performance from Kaloyan Ivanov. Ivanov is a recent graduate of Pratt Institute with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. He will be sharing a performance piece entitled “I Will Not Remember You When I Am Dead.” For a glimpse at some of Ivanov’s work you can visit his website: http://www.yes-k.com/

All are welcome to come out and join us!

Last week, on July 17th, SUPERFRONT’s Public Summer began with the opening of design duo CO’s Weightless Pull. Public Summer’s opening was sponsored by Izze. The event also featured music from DJ Stylus. Many different faces from Brooklyn and beyond came out to celebrate the opening with us. Our founder, Mitch McEwen, even shared some of her breakdancing skills! Overall, the opening was a success and SUPERFRONT is excited for the coming weeks!

Architecture CO’s Weightless Pull was also featured on the site Design Boom! Check out more images from the opening and read more about the design on at: http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/9/view/15777/architecture-co-weightless-pull-for-superfronts-public-summer-pavilion.html

SUPERFRONT is back this summer to emphasis a commitment to, not merely space for artist, but more generally public space. This year’s events will be taking place at Industry City in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. Industry City is emblematic of the political economy of urban space, that is: mass production. CO’s Weightless Pull in a sense interrogates the political economy of urban space, insofar as a central tenet of the installation is the emphasis on materials that are reusable and inexpensive. Hence, it can be suggested that Weightless Pull is a remark on not simply mass production, but also overproduction. Moreover, allowing the community members a space for expression through public art permits community members a voice. Therefore, Public Summer 2011 is not merely a host of events, but an opportunity to provoke a dialogue that questions the following: What does industrial space mean for the public? How does Weightless Pull help us to better understand what seems to be a paradoxical relationship between capitalist political economy (particularly, the incessant emphasis on growth) and our present ecological conditions concerning pollution, global warming, peak oil, etc? Public Summer 2011 is a space for the layperson (the artist, the consumer, the community member) to engage in a discourse about the waning of public space throughout New York City.

Come check out the opening of Weightless Pull this Sunday at 3pm in Industry City! (http://mim.io/07dd11)

Weightless Pull

On June 11th SUPERFRONT kicked off Public Summer 2011 with a design charrette. This years theme for Public Summer is industrial space. The jurors of this year’s charrette were Vito Acconci of Acconci Studios, K8 Hardy, Mitchell Joachim of Terra Form, Olympia Kazi of Van Alen, and Ada Tolla of LOT-EK. Each group was allotted two hours to outline a potential design for the 3,000 square foot courtyard where Public Summer 2011 will be held. In the end, the chosen design, as some may already know, was the up and coming architecture design duo CO with their design: WeightlessPull. However, there were a few designs that received honorable mention, they were: Lenses, Tarp, and Bug City. On behalf of the entire SUPERFRONT team, we would like to thank all of the designers that came out and best of luck to everyone! We are now in the process of constructing CO’s design and everyone is welcome to come out and volunteer some time to the construction of the design chosen for Public Summer 2011!