Workshop #6-Working on our Walks!

We returned from Spring Break motivated to work on the tours and connect with northeasters!

The creators of the tours have walked their routes and are preparing to conduct interviews and collect sounds. They are making connections with people and places on their tour now.
NOW is the TIME to contact ArtShare and the collaborators to be involved in the
Northeast Audio Walking Tours!

The 3 Tour Groups:
#1: E Squared-Central Avenue (from Broadway to Lowry)
#2: Bottineau Walk-Lowery Bridge, down Marshall, through Bottineau Park, up University and back to the bridge.
#3: Trolley Tour-13th Avenue (from Monroe Street to 2nd Street)

We began our workshop with a writing exercise. Writing exercises allow us to explore the narrative, narration and story-telling. We read them as they were written to delve into narrative further and to have the opportunity to be a listener.

Writing Exercise: Pick a place on your walk with historical relevance. Go back to that time. What would make you curious? Who would you see there? What would you ask? How would that conversation go?

some of the writings/readings......

-Thoughts on the factory buildings along Quincy - early 1900s (Northrup King built 1917)
Talk to the architects, the builders - how did they envision the building and its place in the
neighborhood? What is special about the building?
Talk to the laborers working on the building - Can they relate to the idea of the building? Do
they live in the area?
Talk to the people working in the building - Do they see any of the vision the architect had?
How do they experience the building, its surroundings? What stories do they have?
Talk to everyone - How do they see this building in the future? Do they imagine themselves
later in life returning here and reminiscing?
What does the area feel like? Does it evoke emotions? Who are these individuals? How have
they imprinted themselves on the space?

-The landmark on our walk would be the Ideal Diner. I have this weird fascination with old-fashioned diners, and this one is just so cute and friendly. I odn't really know when it's prime time was, but it looks very '50/'60's.
I would go in and ask why the owners decided to cram this little diner in with a whole bunch of factories. I would ask how many factory workers came in there and ate. I would ask what people were like in that time. I suppose that people weren't really different, but it seems like in a place like that, people would act differently to each other. I think people would converso with each other and be friendlier. It is such a small place that you would be forced to interact with those around you.
More than that, though, I'd be most interested in sitting down at the counter, eating, and watching what happens. I would get to immerse myself into that world and see what it's like. I would order pancakes, because you can judge the quality of a diner by the quality of their pancakes. I would tell them that.
Before I left, I would want to know what their best/favrite dish is.