Herkimer Street Stoop Interview is an ongoing community art project with long-term Bed-Stuy residents. I set up the camera and the recorder on my stoop and others’, taking portraits and doing interviews with community members. I record videos or audio while they talk about their lives and connections to this neighborhood.

 

My family has been living in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn for over 10 years. Herkimer Street Stoop Interviews is a tribute to the neighborhood, and yet another opportunity to get to know our neighbors and their histories better. 

 

As an artist, I have been working on social-engagement projects since 2015, but once Covid-19 hit, I stopped working on those projects. During the summer of 2020, I got an idea for Herkimer Street Stoop Interview; I set up the camera and a microphone on my stoop and interviewed members of Bed-Stuy with social distance and in an outdoor setting. I invited a couple of residents who have been living in this neighborhood for many years; after being stuck at home for a couple of months, they were happy to be a part of the project. After being stuck at home, I was grateful to engage. The project started from Herkimer Street’s stoop where I live and started expanding to other areas of Bed-Stuy.

 

I want to create something with meaningfulness for Bed-Stuy people who would be moved. I feel grateful to each person who has shared stories. I also think it is very important to pass down their oral histories to the next generations.