This public art project was developed to engage different sectors and generations through an innovative art experience. The facilitated audio walk project was developed based on participant feedback from the January 2014 Groundswell Conference and has evolved from there http://www.prpeak.com/articles/2013/12/17/community/doc52b0f4ec3f481568745837.txt )
The audio walk files are available here.
This public art project was funded through:
- The Taos Institute http://www.taosinstitute.net/
- Powell River Community Investment Corporation http://prcic.blogspot.ca
- Powell River Arts Council http://www.powellriverartscouncil.com/
- Inclusion Powell River http://inclusionpr.ca/
- Vancouver Island University http://pr.viu.ca/
- Vancouver Coastal Health SMART fund, PR Tourism http://powellriver.info/ and the
- Powell River Diversity Initiative.
Megan Dulcie-Dill, Project Coordinator, was interviewed by Live and Invest and responded to these questions.
What are the audio walks and how are they different from the trails and signs that already exist? The audio recordings are different because they can be a more in-depth perspective or interpretation of a site. Through the recording a place becomes a 3D experience for the senses. The project is about art on the trails and in public spaces, and this art form is in a digital audio format. Anyone can participate so a diversity of views can be presented. I think of it as more fluid or interchangeable than a traditional sign project. Usually a sign is condensed information and visually static. This project shares layers of information through sound.
Why was being involved in this project important to you? I felt that there were stories about the land and places that people would like to share and we don’t listen enough in day to day life. It takes a commitment to listen. These community stories also have limited accessibility and one of the ideas behind the project was to create a groundswell of voices and places around the community both in the role of creators and participants. We often see the same groups together in society but by taking the art out of an institution (which may have limited or similar visitors) the intention is to make the art more accessible. *this is an experiment but that is the intention!
What are you hoping the audio walks will contribute to the community? An inquiry into what art can be. I know a lot of people have assumed this would be similar to an audio guide but that is not necessarily the outcome. Harvey Chometsky has included his own music and questions around learning art through practice while Raymond Lavoie’s walk focuses on people with disabilities and their perspective of a specific place from a TrailRider. One of the upcoming walks underway combines a near death birth experience and the support of a community combined with life and death of the forest. Iona Waisgluss has created an amazing one with interviews and information about Valentine Mountain. I also hope people will be interested in hearing the stories while getting outside and interacting with the environment. I hope the community gets outside, walks more, drives less.