 Hi, I'm Leslie McVane. Welcome to CTN member highlights. We're here today in Lincoln Park with Tempo Art, a new member of community television network. And the artist who has done the installation behind me is with us, as well as the curator and some of the members of Tempo Art. And we'll hear how it started, why it started, and what the mission is. I'm here right now with Alice Spencer, who's one of the movers and shakers of Tempo Art. Hi Alice. Tell me how this started and was it over the kitchen table or what happened? I know you're a wonderful artist, so of course your head's always in that world, but how did Tempo Art start? Well, as you may know, we've had a permanent public art program in the city now for 20 years. But a few years back, there were a number of people that went to the city and said, where can I put a piece of temporary art? And the city said, nowhere, because we don't have guidelines to put temporary pieces anywhere. So a group of us sat down and we wrote temporary guidelines for the city. Once we'd done that, we decided we need a program, a program that supports artists who will use the program. And that's how Tempo started. And was it meant to be and how often is the art supposed to change? And where is it going to be right here in Lincoln Park all the time or where? Our overarching theme is places in transition, because there's so much energy in Portland around infrastructure, around changing what happened in the 1970s when urban renewal happened. And so where can we keep our eye out for places where there are, is the potential for conversation and the potential for issues being discussed and where there's already a lot of energy. And that's why our first piece is here, because the arterial has just been reconfigured back into a street. The park itself is going to be reconfigured to, I think, 90% of its original size. So this was a great place because it's already a center of conversation in the city. And we're highlighting the park as well, which is undergoing renovation. One of the things that happened in the 70s when the arterial was put in is that a neighborhood was decimated. And so that's a historical reference for this piece. It's also true that because this piece is about home, that it touches on the immigrant population that lives right nearby, and loss of other people, all of us in fact, who for whom home is a very important notion and need in our lives. And I think also this park has been a haven for the homeless as well as the Occupy movement. So it's ideal for your first. Lots of that kind of thing. We are trying to keep our conversation around the idea of home and keep it there, because I think that's appropriate for an art piece and not to politicize it. But what we want people to do is to look at it and say, what is this about? What does it mean to me? What's the story I can find in it for myself? Hi, Sean. I'm with Sean Foley now, who's the curator of this wonderful thing. And it's a little different way of curating a show. It's not really a show, but an installation. Tell us a little bit about how they approached you to do this and why you accepted. Well, they approached me. I used to live in Portland, so I know a lot of the people that were on the temple board, and they're all very inspirational forces in the Portland art world. And it's another reason why I miss Portland. They just get together and come up with these ideas and make them happen. And so this hasn't happened before. This temporary public art committee, and it's a private volunteer board, and they needed somebody to help them find artists. And so I received a call from a couple of my dear friends saying, we're going to do this thing. And I think we need a curator. And so my role as a curator in this was pretty much to put together a group of artists. I presented eight different artists. They told me the theme, what they were hoping for, what the mission of tempo was. And I spent some time researching artists. And some of the artists I presented were friends of mine that I have worked with before, who's like Judith fits the theme of a place in transition. And then some were more conceptual. I mean, I wasn't sure. None of us were sure. So I wanted to put out a big spread. And then we had all these really nice conversations. I did, you know, PowerPoint presentations and answered questions about everyone. And we started out with eight and they thought about them. And we would be in communication about, you know, if they had a question about this person's work, or could I see this slide again? Or you mentioned that they did another project somewhere. So that went on for a while and they narrowed the list down to four artists. And then from those four artists, we asked for proposals. And so I drafted up a request for proposals, talking about the theme, the budget, all of those issues. And we had four proposals come in. Then we met again. And at that meeting, I walked the committee through all of the artist's intentions and translated the proposals and then answered their questions. And it was really interesting experience for me, since I'm an artist, I'm only a part-time curator, amateur curator, maybe. And so I was able to, it was a learning experience in both ways, like their concerns about this being a public piece. And then also I was able to help them understand issues about like fabrication, like how these things get made. And yes, that may seem like a really ambitious project, but there's a way that artists hire out work. And you can realize it. So then once Judith was selected, then I spoke with Judith quite a bit. I made this clear from the start, because it's their project, it's their labor of love. And I'm honored to be a part of it. They ultimately chose the artist, the committee, because they're the ones that live in this city. So all I tried to do was present every artist in the best light I could. And then the committee got together and they selected Judith, not me. And I was you know, I would have been thrilled to work with any of them, but it was nice to see Judith, especially learning that she was overseas. Okay, I'm now with Ziggy Drestowski, the engineer for this. Hi. Hi, how are you doing? I'm doing great. So tell me about, have you ever worked with Judith before? I have not worked with Judith. I actually met Judith through Pamela Hawks and I'd moved to Portland in October and tempo got in contact with me because Judith wanted some local engineering support. And my company, Comic Kinetics specializes in doing engineering for artists and mostly, you know, installed and built work. So it was kind of a perfect fit and good timing for everyone involved. And yeah, so I jumped right into the process when I got here. Well, it looks complicated to me. You're the engineer, was it complicated? It's not as complicated as it looks, which is a good thing. Part of the beauty of the sculpture is that it kind of looks like it's falling over, but in actuality, all the loads are pretty well centered. So a lot of the engineering was about how to set the footings and make sure the piece is cited well in the park. And just, you know, all the kind of safety issues should people decide to climb on it and making sure it's just structurally sound. But it looks it looks tippier than it actually is. So do you play that little game with the wood blocks and you pull up? I can't remember the name of it. Jenga? Jenga. I played Jenga a lot growing up, but I think and Legos was what got me into engineering. Well, those two things together would give you that whole balance. So I think it's fabulous and it does look like, you know, you want to stay away from it, but it's safe. It is. It's definitely safe. But that's part of the beauty of the artwork is because it sets you off balance a little bit when you look at it. And, you know, that little bit of fear you have about it falling over is part of what's so engaging about it. It really is. You see it and you just have to come over and see what's this all about. Yeah, it has a certain gravity to it both figuratively and literally, which is nice. Well, thank you so much. Yeah. Maybe it was right here. Yeah, we have gravel delivery. Yeah. So they're going to come and bring gravel for inside that. And then they're going to re-saw it. I think they said, I'm going to turn my email, but I think they're going to bring some sod. I'm now with the artist, Judith Hoffman. Hi, Judith. Hi. Thank you for meeting with me. I love your piece. And I know what the theme was. We know what the history of this park is. And also, I know from reading about you a little bit of your history and your interest in housing and art. So tell me, what happened in your head when you got the proposal? Well, I was thrilled to be able to submit a proposal. So I started researching. I didn't know very much. I still don't give in its history, but I started really looking at Portland and the history and the history of Lincoln Park. And I was thrilled that the Tempo Art Committee was doing what they're doing, bringing temporary. I mean, as an artist, this is great work. And I was thrilled about that. But from the perspective of the work, I started to really think my work does center around the home. And so I started thinking about what could, what would work? What would it ask the community to ask questions while still hopefully being something that excited people? Well, I think you've been very successful. It's fantastic. And the buildings that are stacked here are based on the Sears Robot catalog. Yes, that's right. So the my, one of my real deep interests is in the early 1900s, the Sears, Sears Robot catalog started selling houses that came fully, fully ready to be made. So the sort of IKEA style flat packed in a shipping container with every hill drilled and you just needed a contractor to lay a foundation. And if you were handy, you could build your home yourself. And by today's standards with inflation and things like that, they were for a four bedroom, three bed bath house, they were about $11,000. So these were homes which were accessible to blue collar workers to farmers. And they're really the origin of the American home. This is where, so you don't see very many Sears kits anymore, but you see iteration after iteration on these styles. So you'll see, you know, and that's a lot to do with the architecture itself. I mean, Sears was definitely in communication with architectural styles, but they had sort of congealed everything into one. So they were really ahead of the times. Very much so, very much so. And also, I mean, you know, also the accessibility, I think is something that, you know, to think about that you could order a home. You could choose from a style, you could customize it. And that it was affordable and it was really good hardwood and solid materials. It wasn't, you know, it was, it changed the landscape of the home ownership. And I have seen the images and it went from something very simple to the Queen Anne style. For sure. Yeah. So it was, I think it was over 30 or 40 years that they sold these and they had everything from very detailed Victorian to very basic, you know, housing. And just, I mean, it's just amazing. And it gave people a chance to have it. It absolutely did. It absolutely did. People who otherwise wouldn't have, actually. So, you know, that's, to me, I mean, not only just in terms of the aesthetics, but about that, you know, is just, I think that's something that, you know, I'd like to kind of think about. Well, in here in the city right now, housing is a real issue across the board. And to have something like this for people to look at and wonder and then talk, you know, have dialogue about what's happening in the city around housing and around the needs of the new manors, the immigrants coming here now. And this location is perfect for this piece. Oh, good. Well, you know, I mean, I'm not a Portland resident, so I can't really speak to, you know, all of the kind of complicated housing issues which are here. But, you know, I certainly hope that the piece raises questions and inspires folks. Yeah. And I hope it inspires the city to keep it here permanently. Well, I hope that. And I also hope that the Tempo Art Committee, a Tempo Art, is able to continue doing this and sort of continue the dialogue for the public. Yeah. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. It's my pleasure. Yeah, thank you.