Arrival at Macdowell (Day 1-3)
Monday, April 21st - Day Zero
I flew from Chicago to Manchester, NH on Monday, April 21st. Full flight, terrifying landing. I watched The Rehearsal S2E1 and Hacks S4E1-2. My LYFT driver recommended that if I like burgers, I should try Five Guys.
Got dinner with Harrison Wood Hsiang at the illustrious establishment: Rebels (formerly known as South Side Tavern). Great little bit of rejection therapy from asking multiple people where it was by its old name. They kept saying, “This is a casino.” We persevered. We had a few bites, drank a few drinks, he showed me the developing cover art for the published edition of this dry spell !
Tuesday, April 22 - Day One
Ate breakfast at the airport motel (eggs, bason, toast, an incredible amount of coffee). Thought a bit about what it must be like to run a motel. Did some light observation of the others who came down to eat: there was a couple with a young daughter and a very aggressive dog. They listened to a podcast about prison reform aloud at full volume and argued about how many bagels they really needed.
Then I got a LYFT out to Peterborough, NH. Arrived just before noon. Got the tour of the Main Hall, then my dorm. Finally, unlocked the door to my studio. I read the little tombstones around the room, signed by the various artists who have been in this space. Very overwhelming. I anxiously inhaled my first lunch (incredible soup, gorgeous little brownie, various pieces of veggies, gigantic sandwich with two essential pickles).
Got my tour of the James Baldwin Library. Tested the wi-fi! Checked out several books.
I wandered back to my studio, texted a bit with Sofya. I read the foreword of a collection of plays by Alice Childress (who once worked in my current studio). The foreword ended with a quote in response to how she was often called ahead of her time. She said, “People are not ahead of their time, they are choked during their time.” Then I read her play Florence before going to my first dinner (some maple-soy glazed duck, salad, zucchini, and a banana bread pudding that was like heaven).
I introduced myself to the group after dinner. Kinda clumsily…I am the only new arrival today and many are about to leave.
We attended two presentations after dinner: Juro Kim’s music that made instruments into characters contending with space and miscommunication and Jung Hae’s gorgeous short stories about her childhood in Korea. Then there was a going away party (Dustin and I got lost and had to refer to the paper map a few times in the dark…we talked about ghost stories). I took my first shower, then slept in my bed.
Work from this day:
misc. brainstorming for do no harm
Wednesday April 23rd - Day Two
Woke up for breakfast (lots of coffee, an omelette, pancakes). Then we trekked over to Vanessa’s studio where she took some experimental portraits of us! Very cool!! Lots of great chats with the other artists as I waited. By the time I got to my studio, lunch was already delivered (kind of a chip and dip situation). I read the beautiful things are going to kill you by Amara Janae Brady. After returning my lunch basket, I got coffee grounds (they’re only delivered to studios for the week on Monday, but I know myself and that isn’t gonna work lol).
Spent a chunk of the day at the library checking emails, reading for work a bit, and trying to write. Started the first few pages of do no harm, a piece I started brainstorming about the morning of my arrival. The general idea is a doctor who is struggling with self-harm…like a surgeon who is cutting himself. I talked a little bit about this with the NU MFA cohort last Friday, but hadn’t made any progress.
Went to dinner (halibut, plantains, salad, and flan!). Three people gave goodbyes! After dinner there were two presentations, one from Kyuri featuring video work about abortion in Korea, the forcible tattooing of Korean POW’s and some new work (made here!) and another from Olga in her studio, about a work in progress about a biographical figure whose architectural work she’s in the process of excavating, organizing (lots of cool ideas about social structures in conjunction with architectural ideas). I had big plans to sleep in my studio, but after I showered, I passed the hell out.
Work from this day:
Thursday, April 24th - Day Three
Woke up, threw on my signature banana-print hoodie. Got breakfast (a waffle, two strawberries, home fries, a sausage, and, of course, a ton of coffee). Had a nice long chat with Jung Hae and Olga about form, confidence, the fear of being seen (very relatable to me), whose stories can we tell, the responsibility to tell our stories while we can, etc.
Then I went to my studio…a place I still feel a little unacquainted with. Made some more coffee just to get myself used to that process…it’s a pour over situation and I’m normally in a committed relationship with Mr. Coffee that Mrs. Coffee need not know about.
Wrote five pages of my queer werewolf story lone wolf (maybe play, maybe movie, we’ll see!). Listened to tons of Nine Inch Nails instrumentals on a playlist while doing so.
Ate my lunch (a really yummy noodle thing and another winner of a soup). Then I decided I’d take a walk to listen to a fun and flirty little podcast. I walked from my studio all the way to the pond, then I walked to the boulder. I took a bunch of photos, videos. I found a couple little rocks that seemed to have personalities of their own. I thought a LOT about ticks…there are warnings posted about them everywhere and also I just wanna know what makes them tick. (Post dinner update: MULTIPLE PEOPLE REPORTED TICKS TODAY, I WAS IN THE WOODS SO LONG. THIS IS MY ELLEN RIPLEY MOMENT…I WANT TO BURN MY CLOTHES!)
Made it out of the woods alive and met the chickens. They made these sweet little sounds and seemed kinda curious to see me. Then I wandered back to my studio. I did a little improvised performance as a small rock that had two clovers on its head. Then I wrote a monologue from the boulder’s perspective but kinda like he’s a washed up, eroded down rock star. I kinda feel like maybe he may become a person in the do no harm play (congrats, you’ve been promoted to boulder to living breathing actor!)
Drank a lot of water and read Can-Can by Romulus Linney. Then I came to the library once more. Discovered the bigger bathroom. V. opulent. Spacious.
Made my way to dinner, saw Leona on the path ahead. I walked with her to the main hall where we met one of the new fellows. She mentioned she does some scent performance and we talked about John Waters’ film Polyester. There were three new arrivals today, so I’m no longer the new kid. Dinner was spectacular as usual (grilled lime jalapeno chicken, basmati rice, garlicky swiss chard, and lemon mousse with pound cake). I’ll never get used to being in a place with sparkling water on tap. No need to stock up on La Croix here. Whew.
Back to the library to do some more reading. I read Clair de Lune by Romulus Linney and Ave Maria by Romulus Linney (this one was hilarious and about the one and only Hrosvitha of Gandersheim! Remember her???). Don’t know why I thought Pops would be a play about a father (not very imaginative of me)…very exciting for it to be a collection of short plays.
Just need a little solo time tonight to process all of this beautiful place. The vulnerability of all of the artists, the distinct perspectives and disciplines, the sheer history of the grounds, the sheer amount of artistically prepared food, small simple textural experiences like sinking into some surprise mud, and just this weird internal feeling of anticipating, accepting, marveling, and creating. May sleep in my studio tonight, we’ll see.