Conservation, memory, advocacy, soundscape, nature walk
~ Aleyna Weitzner
A Stroll through East River Park is a collection of narrated and silent walks through the John V. Lindsay East River Park. My hope in making this is that awareness of the East Side Coastal Resiliency plan (ESCR), which will demolish the park, will become wider spread. The tree illustrations are meant to bring viewers a connection to the trees in the park. There are an estimated 990+ trees that will be cut down from the ESCR and I feel that these illustrations will help viewers to see the intricacy, power, and emotion that these trees hold.
Many people who do not live near the East River Park do not know about the plans for its demolition, I wasn’t aware of it until I moved to Alphabet City this year and was two blocks from the park. I think the big problem as to why the awareness isn’t widespread is because the park isn’t in an affluent neighborhood, the housing directly across from the park is public housing. This needs to be changed, this park is a staple of the East Side, and a beautiful place where you can relax in a green space. This park is the place of many lifelong memories being created, a place for city dwellers to take a collective breath of fresh air. I want my project to reflect that. I want it to be an emotional experience where listeners can remember their own experiences at the park as well as make new ones.
Bio
Aleyna Weitzner is a Sophomore who just transferred from Steinhardt to the Gallatin School of Individualized Study to pursue a concentration in scientific illustration. She is very excited to start exploring the rich complex world of scientific illustration.