"We are but Frogs in this City"

Niamh-Erin Cusack’s "We are but Frogs in this City" is a diverse approach on how we interact with our urban spaces in Neukölln. The urban nature of Berlin is built on a large marshy swap and we are simply living on this landscape. Does this simply make us oversized frogs? The sounds that are created within the city are similar to the croaking and splashing of creatures within a pond, their own eco-systematic landscape. This illustrative and playful approach to how we interpret the urban spaces around us, and producing the everyday sounds of Neukölln in an abstract and altered format is a criticism on how noise pollution has become the norm within our fast-paced growing city.

Taking a step back, let’s create a sense of silence through sounds. Sounds that echo through Berlin. Sounds that are heard in our favourite recreational spaces throughout the city. Sounds of birds tweeting, water splashing, branches twizzling, wind gushing, dogs barking, bicycles passing, laughter vibrating, babies crying, leaves bustling, and footsteps trodding. Through the nature of these sounds, with intensive recording of various recreational spaces throughout Neukölln and neighbouring districts, I will be able to also compare the intensity of the sounds heard.

Welcome to Cusack’s very own pond on Weserstrasse. Her paintings mirror the sounds recorded, as she portrays the creatures around the “pond” - the “pond” that is the beautiful city of Berlin. Niamh-Erin Cusack aims to create a space that the visitor can derive straight from their favourite recreational space, whilst being indoors within the busy and dense district of Neukölln. Let’s submerge into the sounds of nature that always surround us, but are seldom heard until the mind is put into its own meditative state. Focusing on the sounds, as well as the city's urban landscape, there is a space in between that becomes a space of joy, freedom and consciousness. It becomes a playground for our curiosity and how we interpret urban silence.