Water On The Pier

Overview

WATER ON THE PIER is an immersive public art installation that combines large-scale video, a massive soundscape and interactive elements driven by the ebbs, flows and forces of the Delaware River.

Cherry Street Pier sits in the heart of Philadelphia’s docklands that were a center of the city’s industrial revolution. It considers how climate conditions we face today are the consequence of decisions made then about urbanization, industrialization and sustainability. To confront these issues, the project offers multiple perspectives: vast soundscapes driven by the sounds of waters moving below the pier, personal experiences in which visitors discover sites by exploring a large map of the Delaware River that runs the length of the pier, videos that are on phones and a large screen, and generated text drawn from years of field observation.

Created by artist Roderick Coover and composer Adam Vidiksis with text by e-poet Nick Montfort, the work asks what impact industrialization, climate change and sea level rise will have on our sense of time, memory and belonging. Filmed in VR, videos take on themes of our tidal environment: of marshes, confluences, docklands, parks & industrial wastelands from Cape May to Trenton. Data from the water flowing under the pier is transformed by electronic composition to create a unique and ever-changing soundscape that imagines a future when spaces like the Cherry Street Pier will be underwater. As users interact with the work, the sounds they trigger contribute to a collective audio experience.

The artists speak to the public and lead impromptu experiences of the installation on the opening on Thurs. Sept.16 (530-630pm), Fri. 6-7PM and Sat. 3-5PM. See also: THE FLOODS, a large scale installation and live concert spectacle at Crane Arts.

Suitable for all ages, WATER ON THE PIER stimulates the imagination to find ways to make sense of climate change and respond to changing conditions.

Roderick Coover - Adam Vidiksis - Nick Montfort

Roderick Coover is a Philadelphia-based media artist. His work is internationally exhibited in venues such as the Venice Biennale Hyperpavillion, The Nobel Peace Prize Forum and Documenta Madrid and recipient Fulbright, LEF and Adam Mickiewicz awards among others. Adam Vidiksis is a Philadelphia-based musician who has received awards from the American Composers Forum, National Endowment for the Arts and ASCAP among others; his works are available through HoneyRock Publishing, EMPiRE, New Focus, PARMA, and SEAMUS Records­­­. Nick Montfort is a New York-based writer whose computer-generated books of poetry include #!, Autopia, The Truelist, and Hard West Turn. The work is produced by Chouette Collective with support from the Temple University Center For The Performing And Cinematic Arts.

Credits

Artist/Filmmaker: Roderick Coover
Composer: Adam Vidiksis
Computational Poet: Nick Montfort
Technical Assistant: Jonah Pfluger
Intern: Alex Glass
Production House: Chouette Collective LLC
Made possible with support from the Temple University Presidential Humanities and Arts Award Program, The Temple University Center For Performing And Cinematic Arts Vice Provost In The Arts Award Program, Temple University Grant-In-Aid, and Chouette Collective LLC.