Text by Ed Hess

I started the Teepee Project in order to give the average person a platform to express themselves and have their voice heard. Every time I put on the news, I see the tea party coverage and can’t help but think how their views do not represent me and how else can the average person express themselves without dressing up in a silly costume. So instead of sitting on the couch doing nothing, a friend and I decided to put a teepee up in Union Square Park, NYC to record people on video and get their point of view on various concerning topics of the day. It turned out to be a success and we will continue the grass-roots effort for as long as we can. I am a big fan of Sohrab and his music, ever since we met in Central Park last summer. We collaborated on a short film entitled, Death and the Dancer in September of 2009 – Sohrab created the musical score and I directed. Hopefully, we will work together again in the future as he is an extremely talented musician, artist and activist. He was kind enough to show up at the teepee in Union Square and can be seen in part 3 of the series, closing us out with a beautifully played song…

Links to YouTube videos
part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXdWlhtMMOI&feature=related
part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXdWlhtMMOI&feature=related

More about Teepee Project: http://nyunews.com/life/2010/04/15/16teepee/