FREQUENCIES
A Crowdsourced Video Mural Celebrating Allston-Brighton
Experience FREQUENCIES every night at the Harvard Ed Portal anytime from 5pm–10pm, now through February 28.
What's the frequency of our city? What's your daily rhythm? Are we all on the same wavelength, living in sync in the neighborhoods we call home?
FREQUENCIES is an after-dark multimedia destination that spotlights the sounds and sights of Allston-Brighton. People who live, work, and play in the neighborhood submitted their own short form videos, audio recordings, and photos, capturing everyday moments that sparked joy, familiarity, and togetherness. Artists Allison Tanenhaus and Maria Finkelmeier—who met at the Harvard Ed Portal—put these collected materials through a signature remix.
Musician and composer Finkelmeier mashed up the patterns, rhythms, and hidden melodies of the crowdsourced sounds. Then Tanenhaus added kaleidoscopic colors, shapes, and textures as visual accompaniment to the soundtrack. The final installation is a celebratory collaboration between the artists with (and for!) the community.
Throughout New England's long winter nights, see Allston-Brighton in a whole new way as pulsating compositions beam out of the windows and reverberate off the sidewalk. Swing by to see and hear the neighborhood as an epically eye- and ear-catching public art experience!
The presentation will run on a 20-minute loop and will be viewable from the sidewalk outside of the Harvard Ed Portal. Swing by rain, snow, or shine! Please socially distance and observe COVID-19 safety protocols.
As of January 5, 2022, all new content has been added to FREQUENCIES! Experience even more crowdsourced videos and audio from around Allston-Brighton, remixed into vibrant art.
Hear from the Artists: Making FREQUENCIES
Maria Finkelmeier
I went into the creative process with no preconceived sounds or format for the music in mind—making all of my decisions from what I heard and saw in the community-contributed footage. A few clips stuck out to me right away: a video of a wild turkey in someone’s backyard, a bike wheel spinning, toddlers running at a daycare, a crosswalk beep, and a band warming up. Just these few clips gave me so much to work with!
Allison Tanenhaus
Working on FREQUENCIES with Maria was exactly my cup of tea: experimental, collaborative, and community-driven! First, I familiarized myself with each audio track—its character, rhythm, and overall flow. Then gathered additional clips from our community submissions that shared commonalities, whether in subject matter, shape, movement, or setting. Like Maria, I didn’t have a distinct plan for how the videos would develop but wanted to create a cohesive, enjoyable experience with plenty of wiggle room for play and serendipity.
Allison Tanenhaus
Allison Tanenhaus specializes in bold geometrics, kaleidoscopic color fields, trippy op art, and unexpected dimensional qualities.
Notable installations and commissions include the ICA Store at the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston; New England Synth Fest; Harvard Graduate School of Design; Boston Convention & Exhibition Center; SaveArtSpace.org; Hotel Studio Allston; "GlitchKraft: Allison Tanenhaus + Friends" at Emerson Contemporary; and Paris Hilton recently selected Tanenhaus to collaborate on an NFT show, "Empowered By Paris: Empowered Women Empower Women."
Read more about Allison's glitch art in The Boston Globe.
Maria Finkelmeier
Named a "one-woman dynamo" by The Boston Globe and Boston's Best 2018 "Creative Catalyst" by The Improper Bostonian, Maria Finkelmeier is a percussionist, composer, public artist, educator, and arts entrepreneur.
Maria creates entire works from found, non-traditional sounds, and transforms iconic structures into percussive playgrounds. She's been commissioned to create large-scale public art works and concert experiences by the National Parks Service, BLINK Cincinnati, TEDx Cambridge, Esplanade Association, New Gallery Concert Series, Illuminus Festival, and Boston Center for the Arts.
Photo credit: Adam DeTour
FREQUENCIES is commissioned by the Harvard Ed Portal and supported by a Transformative Public Art Grant from the City of Boston Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture, with additional support from LuminArtz.