Doors 6:30p
Program 7:00p

UnionDocs
352 Onderdonk Ave
Ridgewood, NY

UnionDocs is delighted to present WISE: In Waves, a bi-monthly series exploring sonic and audiovisual experiments through an ever-evolving range of approaches—sound objects, hand-built instruments, field recordings, analog synthesis, digital systems, and more. Curated by Jenn Grossman, who helms Women Innovating Sound Experience (WISE), an NYC-based curatorial platform highlighting women and non-binary artists working in experimental sound and media arts, the series brings together boundary-pushing artists for an evening of deep listening and live performance.

This iteration features an incredible lineup of live performances by —

Paloma Kop – Working across analog video synthesis, electronic media, and print, Kop’s work is driven by an interest in feedback loops, recursion, and emergent structures. Their performances generate hypnotic visual and sonic landscapes shaped by live processing and self-organizing systems.

Melissa F. Clarke – An interdisciplinary artist merging scientific data and generative processes, Clarke’s work explores the intersection of nature and technology. Expect immersive audiovisual compositions that translate glacial landscapes, underwater topographies, and environmental data into spectral, meditative experiences.

ÉMU (Maria Takeuchi) – A composer and audiovisual artist who crafts delicate sonic poems through handmade instruments, organic textures, and modular synthesis. Her performances merge natural materials—water, dry leaves, shells—with electronic processing, creating atmospheric and tactile soundscapes.

The evening also features a video screening by the amazing Rachel Efruss, a multimedia artist working at the intersection of digital and analog technologies, Efruss’s visuals weave together organic patterns, technological artifacts, and human presence to create hypnotic, layered compositions.

Come through for this evening of sonic exploration that bridges tactile sound, digital systems, and immersive visuals! WISE: In Waves invites you to listen deeply, engage curiously, and experience sound as a space of possibility. Don’t miss it!

Program

Program Duration: 120 mins

Bios

Paloma Kop is an experimental multimedia artist and creative technologist currently based in New Haven, CT. Their practice incorporates electronic media, from analog video and synthesizers to digital systems and code, as well as drawing, print, and liquids. They are especially interested in feedback loops, recursion, self-organizing and emergent structures, and patterns in nature. They received an MFA in Electronic Integrated Arts at Alfred University in 2020, and a BS in Visual Arts and Computer Science from Purchase College in 2014. They have shown work and performed at spaces and events such as Ambient Church (NYC), Eastern Bloc (Montréal), and Ann Arbor Film Festival (Michigan). They have done visiting artist talks and workshops at universities such as CalArts, NYU, and SAIC.

Melissa F. ‘MF’ Clarke is an interdisciplinary artist whose work integrates generative and custom-programmed processes. She merges data and procedural techniques into immersive multimedia installations, performances, and printed works. In series such as Polar and Sila, Clarke explores bathymetric and geophysical datasets, studying glaciers and the underwater landscapes they have shaped. Using computer vision and generative algorithms, she composites and extracts these datasets over time, revealing otherworldly scenes and sounds that depict both deep time and speculative futures. Through her installations, sound publications, and performances, Clarke seeks to reconnect collected data with its organic source, incorporating glass as both a sculptural and resonant element. Her cross-disciplinary approach examines the intersection of nature and technology, questioning how their convergence informs human experience, scientific exploration, and systems of knowledge. Clarke has been an artist-in-residence at The Frank-Ratchye STUDIO for Creative Inquiry at Carnegie Mellon, New Inc, Clock Tower at Pioneer Works, Works on Water, Sanctuary Cities, Visible Future Labs, and Simon’s Center for Geometry and Physics. She has exhibited and performed at venues including the Center for New Music in San Francisco, Federal Hall, Knockdown Center, Pioneer Works, Eyebeam, Issue Project Room, and the Parrish Museum. Her work has been featured in The Wire, A Closer Listen, Art F City, Creators Project, L Magazine, Art in America, and Impose Magazine. Clarke holds a master’s degree from NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications Program (ITP) and has taught interactive art, computational art, web art, and physical computing as a lecturer at SUNY Stony Brook and NYU IDM. She currently teaches art and technology at NYU Steinhardt’s Curatorial Program.

ÉMU aka Maria Takeuchi, is a multi-instrumental composer and audiovisual artist based in Brooklyn, originally from a small town in Japan. She is a composer and audiovisual artist who creates sonic and visual poems, merging organismic soundscapes with generative art and illuminating objects inspired by nature. Maria plays and conducts the sound objects with a delicate yet intentional focus. The subtle sound textures created by water, dry leaves, and shells on the handmade primitive instruments, processed with modular synthesizers for added aesthetic atmosphere. ÉMU frequently collaborates with insomniac hotel since 2021 as MA to explore sound art, installations, and audiovisual performances. The duo has performed at Ars Electronica x NKB, Pleamar Festival, sublime frequencies, and SIGNAL. Maria created visual programming for Petal Mori, illuminating Yuri Shimojo’s art piece with 108 Petri dishes with Sakura petals made of torn washi paper placed on the salt mound for her exhibition Memento Mori at Praise Shadows Art Gallery in 2021. ENN (2023) is an interactive dome installation; the bio-inspired texture and motion-tracked particles of the audience were projected, along with the spatialized composition for 157 speakers at the Satosphere dome as a result of the SAT artist residency. Maria developed the motion tracking piece to the theatrical piece membrane | 虚実皮膜 (kyojitsu himaku) in 2024 at Mabou Mines SUITE/Space 2023-24 collaborated with Yoko Murakami. She continues to decode the beauty of patterns and sounds discovered in nature into cross-disciplinary creations.

Rachel Efruss is an artist and designer based in New York City. She uses digital and analog technology to create multimedia art, video, and live visuals. Her work focuses on patterns between technology, humanity, and nature. Her design and art work has been shown internationally at venues and events including Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, New York Fashion Week, Austin City Limits at the Moody Theater, dadaLab, Anthology Film Archives, Millennium Film Workshop, The Cinematheque, The Cinema Museum, and the Alicante Museum of Contemporary Art. She also teaches art workshops and helps organize DIY events to support accessible arts education, community building, and creative experimentation.