Historically famous for whaling and prostitution, Hudson is better known, today, for its hundred-plus antique stores and its abundance of gifted musicians. Ripe with untold intimacies, Hudson is a town in transition, marked with monuments to its past and future. In two square miles, you’ll find: a prison, community garden, farmer’s market,  community radio station, mosque, an auction house, several music venues, the regional etsy headquarters, wood and metal shops, housing projects, and an abandoned tennis club that is the future home of Marina Abramovic’s performance art center. Recognized as one of the most significant architectural towns in the country, Hudson is also a town of disparity. 21.8% of the town’s 7500 residents live below the poverty line. All of this makes Hudson an ideal setting to discuss how oral history can not only record the past but shape the future.

There will be several opportunities to meet and interview residents of Hudson over the course of the eight days, beginning with a welcome dinner. The workshop will also host a related series of evening oral history film/audio events, which will be open to the public.