In this final episode of season two of Works in Progress, movement-based researchers Ilya Vidrin and Jessi Stegall join ArtLab Director Bree Edwards to discuss their dance-based collaborations at the ArtLab. Both are dancers and educators with graduate degrees from Harvard specializing in neuroscience and ethics. Ilya and Jessi make the invisible visible through their studies of the ethics of physical interaction.
 
During their residency at ArtLab, Ilya and Jessi utilized movement and wearable technologies as the investigative medium for their shared project, The Partnering Lab. As a platform for collaborative movement research, The Partnering Lab explores embodied ethics in social interactions. Ilya and Jessi navigate the moral space between bodies, collectively cultivating virtues like trust, care, and empathy.
 
Join us for this in-studio conversation with Ilya and Jessi about moving together and apart while negotiating ethical balances through collaboration.

Jessi Stegall is a choreographer and dance-theatre artist based in Chicago, IL. She has been an artist-in-residence at Boston Center for the Arts, Harvard ArtLab, Rhode Island Women’s Choreography Project, New Dances Chicago, National Parks Service, Hot Crowd Dance Company, Little Fire Dance Collective, and was recently featured as one of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch” (2022). Jessi holds an M.S. in Ethics from Harvard University with a focus in Narrative Ethics, a B.S. in Expressive Art Therapy from Lesley University, and is an alumna of Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts.

Dr. Ilya Vidrin is a choreographer, dramaturg, and director of The Partnering Lab. Born into a refugee family from Russia, Ilya’s work engages with and investigates ethics of physical interaction, including the embodiment of care, trust, cultural competence, consent, and social responsibility. Ilya is an Assistant Professor of Creative Practice Research and Core Faculty at Northeastern University. Ilya is also an alum of Northeastern, where he pursued undergraduate studies in Cognitive Psychology, Neuroscience, and Rhetorical Theory. He ​holds a Master’s Degree in Human Development and Psychology ​from​ Harvard University, and a doctorate in Performing Arts ​from the Centre for Dance Research at​ Coventry University (United Kingdom)
Ilya’s ArtLab page: https://artlab.harvard.edu/directory/ilya-vidrin/
Ilya’s Website: https://www.ilyavidrin.com/
Ilya’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ilya.vidrin/

Jessi’s Website: https://www.jessistegall.com/
Jessi’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fraulein_stegall/

Works in Progress is recorded and produced in ArtLab’s Mead Production Lab, which is located on the traditional territory of the Massachusetts people, the original inhabitants of what is now known as Boston and Cambridge. Season 2 is hosted by Bree Edwards, produced by Kat Nakaji, researched by Sadie Trichler, designed by Sonia Sobrino Ralston, and edited by Luke Damrosch. The Healing Project concert was recorded by Harvard Media Production Center. The theme music is by Kicktracks.

For more information about the show, the ArtLab, and the artists featured, visit artlab.harvard.edu. You can also follow us on Instagram at @harvardartlab.

In this episode, Lakota music artist, public speaker, and educator Frank Waln joins ArtLab director Bree Edwards to explore the medicinal power of music in constructing futures from the rubble of colonial violence. Drawing on his formative relationship with music, Frank traces the lineage of hip-hop back to experiences of colonial displacement faced by communities of color in America. He discusses how this legacy opened space for him to celebrate and share his indigeneity through storytelling, ceremony, and music. Native artists, having already navigated their own apocalypses, are uniquely equipped with potent cultural tools for fostering renewal.

We delve into Frank’s multi-year artist residency at ArtLab, where he aimed to continue exploring his hip-hop practice—until he received unexpected news: the discovery of a hair sample belonging to his great-grandmother in the Woodbury Collection at the Harvard Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography. This painful revelation marked a pivotal moment in his creative journey. In collaboration with Harvard’s Native American Program (HUNAP) and the Harvard Divinity School (HDS), Frank led a gathering inspired by the Lakota Wiping of the Tears ceremony, creating a healing space for himself and other native peoples at Harvard. Join us for an intimate conversation about Frank’s approach to hip-hop, heritage, and healing at ArtLab and beyond.

Frank’s ArtLab residency page: https://artlab.harvard.edu/directory/frank-waln/
Frank’s personal website: http://frankwaln.com/
Frank’s instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/frankwaln/

Works in Progress is recorded and produced in ArtLab’s Mead Production Lab, located on the traditional territory of the Massachusetts people, the original inhabitants of what is now known as Boston and Cambridge. The show is hosted by Bree Edwards, produced by Kat Nakaji, and edited by Luke Damrosch—theme music . Theme music is by Kicktracks.

For more information about the show, the ArtLab, and the artists featured, visit artlab.harvard.edu. You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram by searching @ArtLabHarvard.

The music in the introduction and conclusion of this episode comes from the concert on April 30, 2024, at Harvard University, led by artist and composer Samora Pinderhughes and The Healing Project. It includes Dani Murcia, Nia Drummond, and Jebreal Jackson on vocals, Elliott Skinner on guitar and vocals, and Joshua Crumbly on bass. The performance features an introduction by Vijay Iyer, the Franklin D. and Florence Rosenblatt Professor of the Arts. 

This musical performance was commissioned by the Harvard University Committee on the Arts (HUCA) and ArtLab. 

https://artlab.harvard.edu/samora-pinderhughes-the-healing-project/

 In this episode of Works in Progress, artist and composer Samora Pinderhughes joins ArtLab director Bree Edwards to discuss the reparative power of collaborative art. As a PhD student in Creative Practice and Critical Inquiry (CPCI) in the Harvard Department of Music, Samora is engaged in unearthing obscured cultural artifacts of collective experience. His work navigates entrenched layers of structural inequality to orchestrate widely resonant projects for healing and harmony.

Moved by a calling to utilize art in service to societal transformation, Samora invites us to think and feel more deeply about navigating our shared worlds. The Healing Project is a New York-based arts organization exploring creative alternatives to systemic violence and is part of Samora’s dissertation. In this concert, Samora and his collaborators intertwine the voices of incarcerated and non-incarcerated individuals, crafting a shared melodic plea for a better world. 

Join us for a vulnerable and inspiring conversation about Samora’s commitment to liberatory creative work for collective healing.

Samora’s ArtLab page: https://artlab.harvard.edu/samora-pinderhughes-the-healing-project/
Samora’s website: https://www.samorapinderhughes.com/
Samora’s Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/samorapinderhughes/

Works in Progress is recorded and produced in ArtLab’s Mead Production Lab, which is located on the traditional territory of the Massachusetts people, the original inhabitants of what is now known as Boston and Cambridge. Season 2 is hosted by Bree Edwards, produced by Kat Nakaji, researched by Sadie Trichler, designed by Sonia Sobrino Ralston, and edited by Luke Damrosch. The Healing Project concert was hosted in Paine Music Hall by the Harvard Department of Music and recorded by the Harvard Media Production Center. The theme music is by Kicktracks.

For more information about the show, the ArtLab, and the artists featured, visit artlab.harvard.edu. You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram by searching @ArtLabHarvard.

In this episode, designer, urbanist, and curator Joseph Zeal-Henry joins ArtLab director Bree Edwards to discuss equity and politics in the built environment. We sat down with Joseph to explore his year-long residency as the Loeb Fellow at ArtLab, where he sought to bridge public service and art in pursuit of new cultural architectures. In collaboration with HUCA, Joseph spent his time at Harvard constructing a public sound sculpture called the “SUPA System,” a sonic installation that utilizes sound as a medium for shaping space.

Joseph discusses the need to shift from models of cultural consumption to cultural production, especially through exploratory spatial practices in music. He emphasizes the importance of integrating different scales and perspectives to create new communal structures for relating and creating. This approach engages a politics of spatial architecture that acknowledges continual evolution and transformation, catalyzing a redistribution of agency and power. Join us for an inspiring conversation about Joseph’s innovative approach to equitable architecture here at ArtLab and beyond.

Joseph’s ArtLab page: https://artlab.harvard.edu/directory/joseph-zeal-henry/
Joseph’s personal website: https://josephzealhenry.com
Joseph’s instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/josephzealhenry/

Works in Progress is recorded and produced in ArtLab’s Mead Production Lab, located on the traditional territory of the Massachusetts people, the original inhabitants of what is now known as Boston and Cambridge. The show is hosted by Bree Edwards, produced by Kat Nakaji, and edited by Luke Damrosch. Theme music by Kicktracks.

For more information about the show, the ArtLab, and the artists featured, visit artlab.harvard.edu. You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram by searching @ArtLabHarvard.

Matt Saunders, Professor of Art, Film, and Visual Studies; Jennifer Roberts, Elizabeth Cary Agassiz Professor of the Humanities, and American and Contemporary Art and; Kristian Hardy & Erik Zou, Harvard Undergraduate Fellows, Summer Humanities and Arts Research Program (SHARP).

Diving into “artistic research,” we discuss what it means to Harvard professors and students. In today’s case study, we catch a glimpse into how artists and scholars engage with a specific set of images in the Alan Burroughs special collection at the Harvard Art Museums. To discuss its contents, we are joined in the studio by Harvard professors Matt Saunders and Jennifer Roberts who provide insights on how this collection inspired their scholarship and art making. We are also joined by Harvard college student, Erik Zou, an undergraduate Summer Humanities and Arts Research (SHARP) fellow. A Harvard graduate himself, Burroughs was interested in using X-rays to distinguish between original and repainted works of art. Join us in discovering what goes on within a painting and how technical analysis has radically altered our perception of art and artistic research.

Link to Alan Burroughs collection: https://harvardartmuseums.org/publications/special-collections/alan-burroughs-collection-of-x-radiographs?group=Alan+Burroughs+Collection+of+X-Radiographs 

Link to Matt’s biography: https://afvs.fas.harvard.edu/people/matt-saunders 

Link to Jennifer’s biography: https://haa.fas.harvard.edu/people/jennifer-roberts 

Link to Jennifer’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jenniferrrrrroberts/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y%3D 

Link to SHARP undergraduate research programs: https://uraf.harvard.edu/sharp-project-descriptions 

Link to Kristian Hardy’s biography: https://artlab.harvard.edu/people/kristian-hardy 

Works in Progress is recorded and produced in the Mead Production Lab, located on the traditional territory of the Massachusetts people, the original inhabitants of what is now known as Boston and Cambridge. The show is hosted by Bree Edwards and Kristian Hardy, engineered by Kat Nakaji, edited by Jemma Byrne, and produced by the ArtLab at Harvard University with help from Thinkubator Media. Theme music by Kicktracks and Gvidon.

For more information about the show, the ArtLab, and the artists featured, visit artlab.harvard.edu. You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram by searching ArtLab at Harvard.

Talking about Tap, today we are joined in the studio by Ayodele Casel, award winning tap dancer, actor, and choreographer of the current Broadway revival of “Funny Girl” and her collaborator and partner, the Director, Torya Beard. Ayodele and Torya were first at the ArtLab in 2019 and have been advisors to its development since then. They return to Harvard for the premiere of their newest performance, 'Ayodele Casel: Chasing Magic' at the American Repertory Theater. Leaders of the Arts both on stage and off Torya is the executive director of A Broader Way, a youth leadership and nonprofit with the mission to amplify the power of women and femmes through the arts. Undercover their magic as we discuss how tap dance has shaped their world and how they plan to use it to improve the lives of others.

Link to Ayodele’s residency page on ArtLab website: https://artlab.harvard.edu/Ayodele-Casel 

New York Times Review of Ayodele Casel: Chasing Magic: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/09/arts/dance/review-ayodele-casel-chasing-magic.html 

Link to purchase tickets: https://www.joyce.org/ayodele-casel-chasing-magic 

Link to Torya’s biography: https://americanrepertorytheater.org/bio/torya-beard/ 

Link to A Broaderway Foundation: https://abroaderway.org/ 

Link to Kristian Hardy’s biography: https://artlab.harvard.edu/people/kristian-hardy 

Works in Progress is recorded and produced in the Mead Production Lab, located on the traditional territory of the Massachusetts people, the original inhabitants of what is now known as Boston and Cambridge. The show is hosted by Bree Edwards and Kristian Hardy, engineered by Kat Nakaji, edited by Jemma Byrne, and produced by the ArtLab at Harvard University with help from Thinkubator Media. Theme music by Kicktracks and Gvidon.

For more information about the show, the ArtLab, and the artists featured, visit artlab.harvard.edu. You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram by searching ArtLab at Harvard.

Join us in the studio with MacArthur “Genius” Fellow and Harvard Music Professor, flutist Claire Chase and her collaborator Lisa (Li)  E. Harris. Professor Chase commissioned Li to create a musical composition that would be co-written and performed by Harvard freshman students in the fall of 2021 and 2022. The score entitled, A Black Woman Told Me, And I Believe Her: A Movement Still Moving, was performed this morning at the ArtLab. Claire and Li are working in experimental composition to challenge the conventional boundaries of music performance and art. In doing so, Li is also the founder and Creative Director of Studio Enertia, an arts, education, and production studio in Houston, Texas. Both women are dedicated to incorporating education and collaboration as an integral part of their artistic practices and advocacy work. Please join us with ArtLab director, Bree Edwards and co-host Harvard College sophomore Kristian Hardy in discovering these dynamic practices transforming traditional thought and theory of art and composition.

Link to Claire’s residency page on the ArtLab website:  https://artlab.harvard.edu/Claire-Chase 

Link to Lisa’s residency page on the ArtLab website: https://artlab.harvard.edu/lisa-e-harris 

Link to Studio Enertia: https://studioenertia.tumblr.com/ 

Link to Kristian Hardy’s biography: https://artlab.harvard.edu/people/kristian-hardy 

Works in Progress is recorded and produced in the Mead Production Lab, located on the traditional territory of the Massachusetts people, the original inhabitants of what is now known as Boston and Cambridge. The show is hosted by Bree Edwards and Kristian Hardy, engineered by Kat Nakaji, edited by Jemma Byrne, and produced by the ArtLab at Harvard University with help from Thinkubator Media. Theme music by Kicktracks and Gvidon.

For more information about the show, the ArtLab, and the artists featured, visit artlab.harvard.edu. You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram by searching ArtLab at Harvard.

One of the first artists in residence at the ArtLab, Dr. Merritt Moore combines two unique passions in her career: physics and ballet. Merritt graduated with a degree in physics from Harvard and went on to earn her PhD in Atomic and Laser Physics from the University of Oxford. She has been named to the “Forbes 30 Under 30” and is featured in "Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls," alongside Ada Lovelace and Oprah Winfrey. While in residence at the ArtLab, Merritt experimented to design, choreograph and program a dance duet between a robot and a human working with a multidisciplinary team which included collaborators from the Graduate School of Design. In this episode, Dr. Moore discusses her experiences of being a woman in STEMM fields, her aspirations to explore space and the challenges and rewards of bringing the arts and sciences together. We hope you join us in an inspiring conversation at the studio with Merritt and ArtLab director, Bree Edwards; Lori Lennon founder and CEO of Thinkubator Media, an organization focused on elevating the profiles of women in STEMM and co-host Harvard College sophomore Kristian Hardy.   

Link to Merritt’s residency page on the ArtLab website: https://artlab.harvard.edu/Merritt-Moore  

Link to Merritt’s personal website: http://physicsonpointe.com/ 

Link to Merritt’s instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/physicsonpointe/ 

Link to Kristian Hardy’s biography: https://artlab.harvard.edu/people/kristian-hardy 

Link to Thinkubator Media: https://thinkubatormedia.com

Works in Progress is recorded and produced in the Mead Production Lab, located on the traditional territory of the Massachusetts people, the original inhabitants of what is now known as Boston and Cambridge. The show is hosted by Bree Edwards and Kristian Hardy, engineered by Kat Nakaji, edited by Jemma Byrne, and produced by the ArtLab at Harvard University with help from Thinkubator Media. Theme music by Kicktracks and Gvidon.

For more information about the show, the ArtLab, and the artists featured, visit artlab.harvard.edu. You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram by searching ArtLab at Harvard.

Artist Jordan Weber joins us in the ArtLab studio to discuss race, identity, design of the built environment and art-making in historically white spaces. Employing slick black obsidian stone and chrome rims, Weber’s sculpture Perennial Philosophies was recently installed outside the ArtLab. For the artist, it evokes a dark “sea we must wade,'' a line from poet Amanda Gorman’s inaugural poem “The Hill We Climb.” A section of Gorman’s poem is included in this sculpture as a memorial to the social upheaval of the summer of 2021. We sat down with Jordan to discuss the halfway point of his year-long Loeb/ArtLab Fellowship at Harvard, where he uses utilitarian materials to produce sculptures and social spaces that speak to ways in which racially oppressed people are physically restricted. We are also joined in the studio by John Peterson, Curator of the Loeb Fellowship at the Graduate School of Design; Director of the ArtLab, Bree Edwards and co-host Harvard College sophomore, Kritian Hardy. 

Jordan’s residency page on the ArtLab website: https://artlab.harvard.edu/jordan-weber-0 

https://artlab.harvard.edu/event/new-sculpture-jordan-weber 

http://jordanjweber.com/ 

https://www.gsd.harvard.edu/person/john-peterson/ 

https://loebfellowship.gsd.harvard.edu/ 

Works in Progress is recorded and produced in the Mead Production Lab, located on the traditional territory of the Massachusetts people, the original inhabitants of what is now known as Boston and Cambridge. The show is hosted by Bree Edwards and Kristian Hardy, engineered by Kat Nakaji, edited by Jemma Byrne, and produced by the ArtLab at Harvard University with help from Thinkubator Media. Theme music by Kicktracks and Gvidon.

For more information about the show, the ArtLab, and the artists featured, visit artlab.harvard.edu. You can also follow us on Facebook and Instagram by searching ArtLab at Harvard.

Art is a journey, but very rarely do we get to witness the creative evolution. Imagine the conversations that could be explored if we truly understood the artistic process and appreciated the research and experimentation that each artwork entailed?

Works in Progress, a production of the ArtLab at Harvard University, is taking on this challenge.

Start listening to Works in Progress in early 2022 wherever you listen to your podcasts. 

WORKS IN PROGRESS is a podcast produced by the ArtLab at Harvard University.
In this podcast, we speak with the contemporary visual and performing artists working at ArtLab.
The ArtLab is helping create the conditions for the Arts to flourish at Harvard, and this podcast brings these artists and their ideas to you.
 

Season 1: Spring, 2022

Hosted by Bree Edwards, ArtLab Director, with Kristian Hardy, a student at Harvard College

Ep 1: Jordan Weber, artist and John Peterson, Curator of Loeb Fellowship

Ep 2: Merritt Moore, ballerina, and physicist

Ep 3: Claire Chase, flutist, and Harvard professor, and Lisa E. Harris, opera singer, and composer

Ep 4: Ayodele Casel, Tap Dancer and Torya Beard, Director, and Educator

Ep 5: Matt Saunders, artist, and Harvard professor; Jennifer Roberts, Art Historian, and Harvard Professor and Eric Zou, a student at Harvard College