Field Harp (for 16 performers)
Field Harp was originally commissioned by the Des Moines Art Center in 2023, as part of the 75 Years of Iowa Art exhibition celebrating the anniversary of the center’s founding. Out of four performances scheduled, three were realized and one had to be canceled due to inclement weather. Each performance was with a different set of 16 volunteer harpists.
Photography by Brittany Brooke Crow.
Plan sketch of field, and excerpt of a recording from the performance on April 30, 2023.
In addition to the Des Moines Art Center, Field Harp was supported by the Daniel J. Huberty Faculty Fellowship in Architecture at Iowa State University. Many thanks to Brittany Brooke Crow for photography, to Olivia Valentine for video, to Phil Young for audio recording, and to all the volunteer harpists who made the performances possible.Field Harp (for 9+4 performers)
New instruments and variations have been added to the Field Harp since the start of the project in 2023. These include Aeolian Bow Harps, Long-String Harps, and Slide Harps. The addition of these new instrument typologies has expanded the possible choreographies of the Field Harp, which are explored episodically in public rehearsals held monthly.
Rehearsal with the aeolian bow harps, Maquis Projects, Izmir, 2024. Photo by Ali Kemal Ertem.