Jessica Reisch: Lake Erie Listening Project
Lake Erie Listening Project - Through October
Jessica Reisch - Lake Erie Listening Project at FEED Media Art Center in Historic Downtown Erie, Pennsylvania
Listening to a Living Lake: Jessica Reisch at FEED
New York–based new media artist Jessica Reisch invites you to experience Lake Erie in a way we rarely do: by listening. Her residency work, The Lake Erie Listening Project, transforms our gallery into a vessel for underwater sound; an intimate encounter with a living ecosystem you can both hear and feel.
Inside the installation, a sculptural boat anchors the room. Visitors step in and sit; low frequencies resonate through transducer speakers under the seat, turning audio into gentle vibration. Around you, projected imagery of Lake Erie’s surface locates each recording in time and place. The sounds themselves are captured with hydrophones (underwater microphones) in the lagoons and wetlands of Presque Isle State Park—a chorus of clicks, flows, and subtle textures we don’t normally perceive. The project was created at FEED in collaboration with artist Austin Clay Willis.
Reisch’s practice sits at the intersection of art, technology, and ecology. She holds an MFA in Computer Arts (School of Visual Arts) and a BA in Education Studies (Brown University). Her work has appeared at Locust Projects (Miami), the Engine Room International Sound Art Competition (London), SIGGRAPH 2024 (Denver), and ISEA 2024 (Meanjin/Brisbane). She teaches digital design and emerging technology at Pratt Institute, NYIT, and Hostos Community College (CUNY); bringing a research-driven, multi-sensory approach to both the studio and the classroom.
For Reisch, listening is a way of building care. In recent press about the piece, she describes using advanced hydrophone technology to reveal Lake Erie’s “intricate sonic tapestry,” pairing sound with contextual visuals to help people connect to the lake’s biodiversity. It’s a simple idea with transformative impact: when we hear a place, we tend to protect it.
How to Experience It
Enter the boat and pause; let your body register the low-end vibrations before you try to “identify” any specific sound.
Look and listen together. The projections help anchor what you’re hearing to a moment and location.
Bring a friend. The piece sparks great conversation about what it means to attend to the nonhuman world—and how art can tune our attention.
Jessica Reisch In the Lake Erie Listening Project Exhibit Boat
Why FEED?
FEED exists to create, present, preserve, educate, and innovate in media art—and to make that art welcoming to more people. Jessica’s installation embraces multiple modes of sensing (sound, vibration, light, touch), expanding who gets to belong in a gallery. It’s art for everybody.
Plan Your Visit
Come sit in the boat, listen with your whole body, and spend time with The Lake Erie Listening Project in person. Reserve timed-entry tickets on Erie Reader Tickets and make an afternoon of it at FEED’s galleries. (While you’re here, explore our other current artist-in-residence exhibition and the works on view across FEED.)
Learn more / follow the artist: See Reisch’s portfolio on her website and find process notes and clips on Instagram @jessicareisch. (jessicareisch.com, Instagram)
If you’d like accessibility accommodations or a tailored visit for a low-vision/Blind group, let us know—we’re happy to help.