A conversation between NY Department of Sanitation's resident artist, sTo Len, and the Assistant Curator of Public Programs Tiffany Joy Butler. Len discusses his artistic practice of remixing and preserving the Sanitation media archives as well as his experience during the residency. This event was part of programming related to Len's exhibition, Office of In Visibility Presents: SAN TV, a media and game lab installation and took place on Jan 28, 2023 at the William Fox Amphitheater, Museum of Moving Image, Queens, NY
Mespeatches
Mespeatches translates to "at the bad water place" and was the original name for "Maspeth," an area in Queens, NY that was inhabited by a Native American tribe of the same name. Working en plein air from a rowboat, Sto uses a process like paper marbling he calls "Tsunaminagashi" to print directly off of these waterways. In this film, Sto traverses the waters of Newtown Creek (a Superfund site and one of the most polluted bodies of water in the US) and Corona Park in Queens. These areas are somewhat hidden from the public and ignored, abused for decades by factories who illegally dumped toxic materials. In this context, Sto Len exposes the area's conditions while reclaiming a relationship by creating artwork that explores aspects of environmentalism, land art, performance, and printmaking.
In 2020, I submitted a written piece for the Queens Memory project, which has been collecting stories from local residents to record an oral history of Queens, NY during Covid. My work was selected along with others to be adapted into a play and film by Queens Theatre, which premiered on April 22nd 2020.
I am honored to have my writing featured in the first monologue of this amazing film. I wrote this piece during the height of the pandemic in Queens. It was healing to write and helpful in processing what was happening at the time. It takes me back to hear my words wonderfully acted out by James Seol but it also places me squarely in the present, thankful we are getting vaccinated and slowly moving forward. This film is important, capturing the voices of Queens residents and a moment in time during this crazy chapter of our lives.
The film, produced by @queenstheatre and Madison Square Films, was written, adapted, and directed by @harrisdoran (Beauty Mark, Bleeding Love), and stars 11 actors presenting the accounts of Queens residents who shared their stories about their lives last year with the Queens Memory Project at the Queens Public Library.
At turns sad, frustrating, angry, humorous, and even hopeful, the stories illustrate the emotional and psychological impact of the events of 2020 on our lives. As the film opens up, it reminds us that when New York shut down due to the virus in March 2020, "the stories of Queens were silenced. But the voices of Queens still called out to be heard."
Going to the Edge
sTo Len takes us on a scenic stream of consciousness walk during the pandemic through his neighborhood in Queens, NY to his favorite waterfront off the beaten path: the Newtown Creek. Along the way are the ghosts of waters past, old trails, memories, boat rides, wildlife, discarded gloves and a few masked friendly faces.
“The Newtown Creek is a special place to me and I wanted to take you all along on a video walk since we cannot do one in person. I think that we can learn a lot from the water that surrounds us, especially at a time when the pandemic has created such suffering and uncertainty, when our scheduled lives are so ephemeral and put on hold, when we must remain so still in our solitude. The water is still there however, constantly moving and shaping the land. The water’s edge is blurring our hard edges. I go to the water for guidance. It shows us how to ebb and flow, a liquid GPS to better navigate the world as fluid dreamers, dancers, workers, and survivors. It can teach us how to re-emerge into the world with one another as well. As public space has become completely transformed by the coronavirus, rediscovering the outdoors outside the box provides new opportunities for us to engage with the water and one another. It’s time to reclaim new public commons beyond the ones predetermined by our patterned behavior. It’s time to rediscover our waterfronts and find new ways to access our edges.”
“Going to the Edge” is part of Walking The Edge, a collaboration between arts organizations Culture Push and Works on Water with the NYC Department of City Planning. The project is funded by the Mayor’s Grant for Cultural Impact from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.
New York City is defined by its waterways but New Yorkers may see our city as more land than water. Walking the Edge was a proposed 520 mile participatory walk around all of NYC’s coastline that invited New Yorkers to reconnect to the diversity of the city’s shorelines and have a voice in the city planning process. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, a special online version of WtE took place instead and “Going to the Edge” was one of the videos in this program.
Tôi đã thấy ( I Have Seen)
Incorporating video shot on boat rides through the Mekong Delta and Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, Tôi đã thấy (I Have Seen) explores the confluence of identity, war, environmental justice, and global water issues through a poetic travelogue documenting the 40th anniversary of the Vietnam War and artist sTo Len's first trip to his motherland. Text in the form of subtitles playfully stitch together an assemblage of material that includes snippets of popular Vietnamese American show, Paris By Night, and live action sequences from a Buddhist themed amusement park. The artist's own soundtrack mixes field recordings and a famous Vietnamese war song, with samples of television and the recording of a live improvised score.
Rio Medellin
A love song to the Medellin River that runs through the middle of Medellin in Colombia. I spent 3 weeks walking along its banks, exploring its streams, its history, its problems, and possibilities. This was part of my research while in residence at Casa Tres Patios, an artist residency, art laboratory and exhibition space. I went to feel and see the river, the people who live near her, with her and the culture of their country. Masacre, a legendary Medellin Metal band, provides the soundtrack. Used only with love and respect.