FRONT International, the Cleveland Triennial
July 14-Sept 30th 2018
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland, OH

curated by Michelle Grabner

Commissioned for FRONT International 2018, Theme Song for Cleveland and Akron, is a collaboration with composer Silas Hite and was installed at the Rock and Hall of Fame from July to the end of September.

I’ve been interested in how personal fictions create narrative truths, the way we invent who we are each day with each interaction. We assume that there is truth in this, but we are literally making it up as we go. We are inventing ourselves. This project was a way for me to look at this concept on a larger scale. How do personal fictions become regional truths? How does a city define itself?

Read the Wall Street Journal Review

The video was created to be exhibited in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, so the form needed to match the venue. The lyrics to the song were gathered via survey. The music was composed by Silas and the band is comprised of musicians from the region. We recorded at Tri-C Community College in Cleveland and mastered it in LA.

It was produced by Chris Ohlson, shot by Drew Xanthopoulos and edited by David Blinn, features the Shaw High School Marching Band, the Burning River Roller Derby Girls, D Squared Step Dance Troop and the Zumba dancers of Cleveland. We found iconic locations around the city and invited citizens to participate.