Public & Community Art
In Other Eyes (2023)
"In Other Eyes" was inspired by fieldwork talking to my multicultural neighbors. I was initially inspired by observing how biracial children navigate between cultures at a young age and the importance of understanding others' cultural perspectives.
Can I relate to things differently, through the lens of my neighbors if they’d first teach me nuance in their native language? The first iteration is a compelling traveling public sculpture taking the shape of a book with my neighbors’ words engraved in 25 languages.
Working on the second iteration, I have established an Open Mic practice at the Cambridge Foundry. Each event was an improv performance. The initial three open mics have given me and my community great inspiration.
Open Mics and Engagement at Cambridge Foundry
I have established an Open Mic practice at the Cambridge Foundry. Each event was an improv performance. The initial three open mics have given me and my community great inspiration.
Community Art
The Juke Box
Peter Crawley & I in front of the Jukebox album cover.
Permanent Public Art Installation created by Elisa H. Hamilton and Loop Lab at The Cambridge Foundry, 101 Rogers St. Cambridge, MA
Artist Elisa Hamilton transformed a 1960 Seeburg jukebox from a machine that plays music into a public artwork that plays a growing archive of Cambridge community stories.
As a community member, I contributed a story, as a track, about our sweet neighborhood to the Jukebox.
The Jukebox is installed at the Cambridge Foundry - the most exciting new art institution to come to Cambridge since I did.
Teach Me Your Song
Home on Our Backs is a documentation of Tien’s own journey of finding belonging in Boston Chinatown, and that journey continues as she creates a final piece during the last weeks of the exhibition. The artist is inviting the public to meet individually, in-person or online, during which she asks that you teach her a song or a poem in your native language, whatever that language may be. The goal of this activity is to prompt participants to recollect memories of their own heritage, and she will create a space through her art to share that heritage with others.
Pao Arts Center Artist Residency
While in residency at Pao Arts Center, I drew upon visual and audio inspirations from the Chinatown community to capture the nuances and textures of a place and a people in transition. I also hosted workshops to engage in an exploration of a diverse and complex local diaspora and Asian American culture, past/present/future.