(upbeat music) - [Matt] Escape into the colorful world of Kim Tateo, Build community one rock at a Time with Coach Bree Hassall, and catch a performance from Novus Cantus.

(upbeat music) It's all ahead on this episode of "AHA: A House for Art."

- [Announcer] Funding for AHA has been provided by your contribution and by contributions to the WMHT venture fund.

Contributors include The Leo Cox Beach Philanthropic Foundation, Chet and Karen Opalka, Robert and Doris Fischer Malesardi, and The Robison Family Foundation.

- At M & T Bank we understand that the vitality of our community is crucial to our continued success.

That's why we take an active role in our community.

M&T Bank is pleased to support WMHT programming that highlights the arts, and we invite you to do the same.

(upbeat music) - Hi, I'm Matt Rogowicz, and this is "AHA: A House for Arts," a place for all things creative.

Today we're heading to the Boor Sculpture Studio at U Albany to meet up with artist Kim Tateo, who creates dreamy works of art that often reveal hidden layers.

Take a look.

(dramatic music) - I am an artist, a musician, and a leader in the community.

I'm really into dreaming up just wonder for the world and trying to share that with everyone.

(upbeat music) My work is very colorful and very whimsical.

I'm really interested in creating sort of the imagined spaces of like where all hearts are connected.

I know that sounds like really sort of maybe out there, but I sort of love this idea of like finding belonging in art.

And so they are imagined spaces.

So whether they are these bright, colorful sort of blocks of color or they are reimagined nature spaces, I sort of kind of combine all of it.

The artifact of that ends up being this often bright, bold, colorful world.

(dramatic music) I sort of have an empty canvas, and I just kind of paint.

And I might start off with something like a limited palette or a mood that I'm trying to convey or maybe I'm having many moods.

I'm never really sure where it's gonna take me, but I just get canvas going.

I just say that I wanna move the hand and just sort of start.

And then often in that time I will pause, and I'll sort of see little things kind of come together and work off a moment in a piece and then try to like enhance that.

I really want people to have this feeling of wanting to dive into the work.

And so I try to kind of see where I'm wanting to dive into it myself first.

(dramatic music) I grew up in Iowa in a small town called Dysart, Iowa.

It was a square mile.

I was adopted, so I'm adopted from Korea, but I was an orphan, so I don't actually have any idea of anything.

I grew up around a lot of trees and nature, and I think just being immersed in nature like art was around me because I would see art in nature all the time.

A lot of the work has like a black light responsive paint, which is really just a paint that is sort of neon, and when you turn a black light on it, it really glows and shines.

But to me that became this like metaphor because I'm always thinking of the ways which all beings are interconnected.

And so that became this sort of like hidden layer, this like hidden reminder for all beings to feel like they belong.

(dramatic music) The Snail Mail Art Collab is a project that I started in the pandemic.

I wanted to connect with people and sort of create an experience where we would have a piece of art that we worked on individually but then collectively in a group.

And it also explored the idea of impermanence because you started with something, and it completely would change by the time it would come back.

Everyone started with a piece of paper and creating anything they wanted.

You mailed it to the next person, and that person would then add to the piece.

The only rule was that there had to be one element of the original.

So if there was an entire piece of paper blue, you wanna keep one tiny piece of paper blue if you wanted to paint the whole thing yellow.

(dramatic music) And I actually have artists literally all around the world doing it.

I have three tracks of artists and it's been, it's been challenging.

There was a post office in the Philippines that literally exploded.

Someone sent me something that said I have to quit because we lost all the work because the post office exploded.

And I was like, this, I can't make this up.

This is a real thing.

And so it was a very challenging thing to like, it's a challenging thing to sort of lead, but I'm not actually creating any art in that.

I'm mostly facilitating other artists.

But we eventually hope to have like a in-person show with the artists from all around the world coming to the capital region to potentially show off this piece.

I feel so excited that I have created a network of people that have all stayed in touch with each other through social media, through this artwork.

And there's like new friendships and connections that are happening.

And so that's exciting.

(upbeat music) I run a project called Friends of Tivoli Lake Preserve and Farm.

We use a flock of sheep to manage vegetation in a nature preserve.

Working with animals and being on the land has been such a beautiful experience 'cause I'm literally tending to both the plants and the animals and sort of watching that relationship.

And to me, I think a lot about cycles, like life cycles sort of life, death, life or who knows what happens.

I experienced loss at a young age and because I was an orphan, there's a lot of like unknown mystery to me.

And so for me, when I'm in nature, I witness those cycles all the time.

Whether it's literally the sun and the moon coming or the seasons, we always see cycles happening.

And where I used to really be afraid and have a lot of sadness around the loss of change, I have really come to embrace change and all of those cycles that are constantly around us and kind of leaning into that unknown space.

(upbeat music) Like I don't know everything, and that's completely okay.

That's sort of the human experience is just being here and being curious.

(upbeat music) Being in nature and witnessing that has just been such a gift.

And then tying it to my art, that's just sort of my visual way of playing with these ideas that I'm curious about.

(upbeat music) - The Albany Rock Project is a creative initiative that was founded as a community rock hunt program using hand painted rocks to engage and inspire Albany youth.

Jade Warrick spoke with the Albany Rock project's founder, Coach Bree Hassall to learn how it all started and to see what's next for the organization.

- Welcome, Bree.

- Hi.

- Hi.

It's nice to have you in A House for Arts today.

- Appreciate you, thank you.

- Love that you're all decked out in your gear so people know.

- Gotta let them know what the brand is.

Have to let them know.

- Right?

Well, speaking of that, well, let's talk about the Albany Rock Project.

So I know the Albany Rock Project is a creative program and initiative you started, but I would love the audience to know what is the inspiration and how it came to be.

- That's a long story, but long, long story short, I was an educator before I was an artist, before I was officially an artist entrepreneur I am today.

And the pandemic happens, and I lost my job at that time.

And that meant that I was an educator of 850 students to zero because of the pandemic shut down.

And I became very concerned about solving, solving the problem of students not being able to play enough.

This was in the time of basketball hoops being, the rims being pulled off of the backboard.

This is the time of the netting of the basketball hoops being tied together as an institutional response of you can't play here.

And that was the first time in my life I'd ever seen something like that.

And because of that, I wanted to create something that was accessible, colorful, and fun.

- That's beautiful.

- Yes.

- The Albany Rock Project.

- The Albany Rock Project was born October of 2020.

- So give us a little bit of background.

What is the project?

- In short, I say that I paint rocks, and I hide them throughout the city.

I start the rock drops in black and brown neighborhoods, but the location of these rocks change all the time.

And so in short, I wanted to be able to serve BIPOC communities and to also be able to give them opportunity to play more.

An opportunity to just take a pause and enjoy the moment.

- Yeah, now why rocks?

- Again, back to the accessibility part.

Everybody knows what a rock is, right?

We could walk outside right now and understand what a rock is.

And I think I wanted to use something that didn't have to be explained too much as a medium.

And I think rocks already are underestimated.

So I think it's helpful to make some, to use something like that and to beautify it and to help people re-understand what beauty could be.

- That is true.

And you're like, it's from nature, can come in and beautify, you know your community by your own work.

- Yes, really travel friendly too.

- That is true, good point.

- And so like you could, the rock, the rock that you see here won't be there again because it's been transported somewhere else and is leaving an impact somewhere else.

- Now, quick question.

- [Bree] Sure.

- Have you ever, have you ever painted like a boulder?

- I want to, but nobody will let me yet.

And so I don't know if that's because it's a boulder or if it's because, you know, we just need a little bit more planning around how to transport this big entity.

- Yeah, not as accessible with that one.

- Right.

- Yeah, so I know you invite a lot of artists into this project.

- Yes.

- So what are some like unique opportunities that artists that you hire, what do they gain?

What do they get?

What does that look like?

- That's so interesting.

Thank you for asking that.

For me, I wanted to include artists in the local community a little bit more in the Albany Rock Project by providing an opportunity for them to develop themselves artistically.

What does that mean and what does that look like?

I offer them opportunity to paint a rock collection, and that's usually eight to 12 rocks of different sizes and different textures.

And I challenge them to use this medium to express their motifs, their artistic style and things of that nature.

Typically, I also pay them for their time, for any time that we meet.

And I also pay them for the work that's implemented.

What do they gain from this?

I think they gain career readiness.

I think they increase their artistic skill with these rocks 'cause they're not perfectly smooth either.

And I think that they increase their ability to advocate for themselves.

- Sounds like the full package, you're getting funding, you're getting like workforce developmency.

- Workforce development yeah.

- And life enrichment all in one package, right?

- Yeah, I've had artists come back to me after I've asked for some feedback around how I could make it better.

And I've had artists say, honestly, it was just a great time.

I haven't had the opportunity to just sit and to enjoy something that I'm creating in a while.

And so I like to offer that to them too.

- That's a beautiful thing.

- So as someone, like let's pretend, never, you're talking to someone, they've never been, never heard of the Albany Rock Project.

They're walking into your program or they're walking to an event.

- [Bree] Yes.

- What does it look like for a first time person stepping into this project?

Like what would they expect?

- Well, they would expect to have some warmth when they come in, to receive warmth from me specifically.

I love to laugh.

I'm very open.

You could see, you could already feel it on me.

Like I just love to have a good time, and I love to build community.

And what does it mean to build community?

It means to be inviting so that people can come and make that choice for themselves.

And so warm, welcoming.

I also, I like to be flexible.

There are a lot of people who are very uncomfortable with art, and because of that they just walk away before they even try.

And so I like to use all of those things together to create the space for people to become more vulnerable with themselves to do the art.

- Yeah.

- I know you know that people immediately say, oh, I'm not good at art or art's, not my thing.

Insert whatever, what other things people tell themselves.

But I like to create the environment so people can put that down.

- Yeah, so it's just like, this is a free creative space.

You can start as simple as you want.

- [Bree] Yes.

- Or as complicated as you want.

- [Bree] Right.

- And you should feel safe doing whatever, - Whatever that is exactly.

- Because it's about expression and community at the end of the day, right?

- Right.

- That's awesome.

So what are some, do you have any like community stories or any impact you've seen?

Like how are folks reacting to this?

'Cause this has been going on for a little bit.

- [Bree] Yeah!

- So like how has been the feedback or the community reactions?

I know you work with kids all the way up to the adults, so.

- Yeah, it's a wide range of ages that I cover.

And I think I like it that way.

I don't think it's just a kid thing.

I think adults also can be transformed by this work too.

I've seen it on a micro level.

I have gone out and hidden the rocks myself because that's what has to be done in order for people to go find them, they have to be hidden.

And I was being followed by a group of six children who noticed that I was hiding.

- The rocks.

- The rocks, and I became so, I became so caught up in the fact that I was being followed that I missed out On what they were experiencing.

- Yeah.

- They had a lot of joy, but they kept their distance.

They were watching me.

- Yeah.

- But they weren't right behind me.

But I noticed I was being followed, and I was being watched in Swinburne Park actually uptown.

And so that's the passive impact because I wasn't even speaking to them directly.

But the direct impact is people asking me if they can have a rock that they see on my table.

I give one free rock away that I've done at every event because there's always one person that says can they have a rock that I'm not selling?

And I have to say I give it every time.

- [Jade] Yeah.

- Because that's what it's for.

It's for that one moment, for that spark sight of someone that says I want that.

Can I have it?

- Yeah.

- And that's a vulnerable thing to do, right?

We're all vulnerable human beings.

And because of that, I think art is one of those avenues that helps us to get there.

- Oh yeah, yeah, speaking to the choir here.

Definitely 100%.

- Yeah, you know.

- So what is coming up for the Albany Rock Project?

Do you have any events coming up or anything that you want people to be, make sure they're paying attention to or can connect with?

- For sure, here's a couple of things.

So in terms of Albany Rock Project content, I think people should look forward to seeing some of my top five videos.

When I do festivals, I invite people to paint any kind of things on rocks, anything that they want.

And including the theme of the festival.

And so recently we did Tacos for Life.

- Go, Ben!

- Which was this past Saturday, right, with Ben Williams.

And I encourage people to paint tacos on these rocks and things of that nature.

And I picked the top five rocks that I thought were impressive.

They didn't all have tacos on the ones that I picked, but I said, hmm, there's some investment in some of these.

So content wise, you should be seeing more variety of rocks done by myself and other artists but also everyday people and also more events.

You'll just see more, Albany Rock Project will just have more of a presence in Albany.

I think we're there, but I think this year we're really gonna get there.

- Always grow bigger.

- Grow even bigger.

And I hope that honestly we go bigger than just Albany and New York state.

- Oh, I can't wait to see it.

- I'm really excited.

- Me too.

Well, thank you Bree.

- Thank you.

- For joining us today and telling you, and telling us all about this beautiful project and initiative you're doing in the upstate area.

- Please welcome Novus Cantus.

(upbeat guitar music) ♪ Winter has come to rouse me from fall's soft bed ♪ ♪ Cool winds knock at the windowpane ♪ ♪ But this lively being's at rest ♪ ♪ Only the body stares at the abandoned life ♪ ♪ And the bleaker soul is asleep ♪ ♪ Retreats are from the anomaly ♪ ♪ On a quilt of humility ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ Although I have it to see tomorrow ♪ ♪ The forecast is much the same ♪ ♪ No, no, I cannot believe ♪ ♪ That winter's come again ♪ ♪ While softly to the warmth of taverns and bars ♪ ♪ I remain pensive and withdrawn ♪ ♪ In the comfort yes of home ♪ ♪ Here in the gusts of snow ♪ ♪ That doesn't ridicule the senseless cold ♪ ♪ What did it care ♪ ♪ The detained of natural beauty ♪ ♪ The end of distractions from mortality ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ Oh, oh, no I have to see tomorrow ♪ ♪ The forecast is much the same ♪ ♪ No, no, I cannot believe ♪ ♪ That winter has come again ♪ (upbeat music and humming) ♪ The once joyous fellow indeed suffers now ♪ ♪ Sweet to the wee ends ♪ ♪ Their hearts are wilted sorrow ♪ ♪ And huddling rush to rest ♪ ♪ I the ground is bleached in contrast ♪ ♪ To the withered roots of writhing trees ♪ ♪ Oh, winter I knew you long ago ♪ ♪ Your departure again will be slow ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ Although I have to see tomorrow ♪ ♪ The forecast is much the same ♪ ♪ No, no, I cannot believe ♪ ♪ That winter has come again ♪ (dramatic music) (upbeat music) ♪ As you gaze upon me now ♪ ♪ I didn't always look this way ♪ ♪ I had legs, oh so many ♪ ♪ I was green and oh so round ♪ ♪ And I crawled on my belly ♪ ♪ Upon the forest floor ♪ ♪ And I fed on the green leaves ♪ ♪ And I walked in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I walked in the cool of the night.

♪ ♪ Then one day nature called me ♪ ♪ And said it's time to fly ♪ ♪ And I felt an urge within me ♪ ♪ To make a place of rest ♪ ♪ So I climbed to the treetop ♪ ♪ And made myself a bed ♪ ♪ Then I closed my eyes ♪ ♪ And I slept in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I slept in the cool of the night ♪ (upbeat music) ♪ And I slept in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I slept in the of the night ♪ ♪ As I woke from my slumber ♪ ♪ In the peace of my cocoon ♪ ♪ I stretched toward the heavens revealing beautiful wings ♪ ♪ And I flew toward the moonlight as high as I could go ♪ ♪ And I spread out my wings ♪ ♪ And I flew in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I flew in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I flew in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I flew in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I blew in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I blew in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I blew in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I blew in the cool of the night ♪ ♪ And I blew in the cool of the night ♪ (tonal music) - Thanks for joining us.

For more arts, visit wmht.org/aha and be sure to connect with us on social.

I'm Matt Rogowicz.

Thanks for watching.

(upbeat music) - [Announcer] Funding for AHA has been provided by your contribution and by contributions to the WMHT venture fund.

Contributors include The Leo Cox Beach Philanthropic Foundation, Chet and Karen Opalka, Robert and Doris Fischer Malesardi, and The Robison Family Foundation.

- At M&T Bank, we understand that the vitality of our community is crucial to our continued success.

That's why we take an active role in our community.

M&T Bank is pleased to support WMHT programming that highlights the arts, and we invite you to do the same.