Wandering the streets, cleverly hidden

Twiching Around Lower Manhattan

To "twich" is to attempt to see a rare bird in a location that other birders have reported chance sightings. On this guided audio tour, Alaina Stamatis leads groups on the trail of local perching birds, songbirds, and birds of prey that have gone extinct since their last sighting. This hapless search draws upon many of life's own ill-fated pursuits. The tour follows a clear path through lower Manhattan (beginning upon exiting the Clocktower Gallery). Participants are loaned a camouflage poncho and camouflage binoculars, in order to better stalk the birds.

Alaina Stamatis: Strife Lessons

For her spring 2012 residency in performance art at the Clocktower Gallery, writer and engineer of unsettling fantasies Alaina Stamatis conducted a series of surreal classes, referred to as "Strife Lessons." By hypnotizing an audience through soothing narration, and pleasurable, repetitive motion, Stamatis guided participants through a themed succession of traumatic experiences. The hope was that when they emerged from her "class," they learned to value their happy lives and were propelled toward greatness. Each event included a collaboration with a musician, who created an appropriate, harrowing soundscape. This performance series was supplemented by self-help broadcasts for Art International Radio and informative, pocket-sized books.