Sheryl Oring ~ New York

The Birthday Project
By Sheryl Oring
Brooklyn, New York: Fargo Books, 2008. Edition of 8.

5 x 6.75 x 3.5"; 198 pages. Includes 45 "birthday cards" and photographic portraits. 24 photos of the performances. Bound in handmade yellow linen book cloth with foil-stamped images. Slipcased in orange bookcloth with foil-stamped bow on one side and candles on the other.

Introduction: "The Birthday Project includes a selection of birthday cards sent to President Bush by people across the country in 2006. The messages were dictated to artist Sheryl Oring as part of a public performance project that began Brooklyn and included stops in seven other locations across the country: Indianapolis, Raleigh, Tampa, Houston, Des Moines, Albuquerque, and Yosemite National Park. The portraits of people who dictated cards were taken by Brooklyn-based photographer Dhanraj Emanuel."

In each of the locations Oring dressed in vintage secretary clothing. She set up a portable office at parks and flea markets in these locations and invited people to dictate birthday cards to President Bush for his 60th birthday. Oring typed participants' responses, gave the original to the interviewee in a stamped envelope addressed to the White House, and kept a duplicate for her archive and this book.

The Birthday Project was featured on NPR's Morning Edition and in numerous media outlets. A grant from the Creative Capital Foundation helped fund the project and support from the Puffin Foundation contributed to this book.

From Raleigh:
     Dear George,
     1946 - a very good year, I'm proud to be an American, and I'm      proud that our President is a good and moral man, God Bless      you always.

From Brooklyn:
     In sincere hopes that with age comes wisdom. Happy Birthday      Mr. Bush

From Des Moines:
     Hello Mr. President,
     Even though I may not agree with everything you have done, I      do respect you as President.
     I think you need to reconsider the stem cell research. I hope you      have a happy birthday. I'm proud to be an American.

From Albuquerque:
     Dear Mr. Bush, Give peace a chance. Sincerely,

From Indianapolis:
     Mr. Bush,
     Since you've taken office you've set back this country in terms      of foreign policy, anti-corruption, environmentalism and a      number of other areas.
     I have little doubt that history will see you as one of the worst -      if not the worst - presidents.
     I have little hope that things will improve while you're in office.      So here's looking forward to your leaving.
     Oh, and happy birthday.
     Sincerely,

$1,400 (Three copies remaining)

Writing Home
By Sheryl Oring
Brooklyn: Sheryl Oring, 2006. Edition of 18.

7.25 x 5.5" three-panel portfolio. Closes with leather ties. Bound in beige linen bookcloth by Jamie Munkatchy. Each book features an original Polaroid photograph of the Eldridge Street Synagogue or the surrounding neighborhood on the cover. Contents include a hand-typed introduction; 43 letters dictated during performances at the Eldridge Street Project in 2005; and, a flag-bound book featuring eleven Polaroid photos of Eldridge Street Synagogue and the surrounding neighborhood. Inside pockets are made out of pages from a Yiddish dictionary and a Chinese-language volume listing books permitted for publication by Communist censors, alluding to the mixed nature of this Lower East Side-Chinatown neighborhood.

This book was made in conjunction with a series of interactive performances – Writing Home: Conversations with our Ancestors — by Sheryl Oring at New York’s Eldridge Street Project. It explores the connection between place, language, and memory, particularly in reference to the American immigrant experience. For this project, Oring set up a portable office at the Eldridge Street Synagogue - built in 1887 and now a non-profit cultural center - and invited participants to dictate letters to their ancestors. Using carbon paper and a vintage typewriter, Oring typed participants' response, gave the original to the interviewee, and kept a duplicate for her archive and this book. Oring continues to perform "Writing Home" at venues such as the International Center in New York City.
$725

I Wish to Say... vol.2
By Sheryl Oring
2005. Edition 100.

4.5 x 7.25"; 28 numbered pages. Housed in an 11.75 x 9.25" manila folder that is closed on three sides. Title label at top of folder.

Includes a selection of cards created during performances in Los Angeles and Walnut Creek (California) in 2004. Combines art, politics, and interactive performance to offer the public a chance to say what's on their mind. Oring set up a typewriter and asked visitors "If I were President of the US what would you say to me?" The visitor's reply was then handtyped to a postcard addressed to the White House. With photographs by Dagmar Hovestädt of participants.

I Wish to Say took form after many Europeans told Oring that all Americans think alike. Oring: "Because I had lived in so many parts of the country, I thought this couldn't possibly be true. This project is demonstrating to the world how diverse America really is….The response has been very emotional and very immediate. You get a very different view of the country talking to ordinary people."

“Dear President Bush, It's unfortunate that you send men and women from all walks of life to war, to die for your America when you can't even give the basic rights of 'marriage' to people who are 'different' than you."
$225