a'yen tran / cv

A’YEN TRAN / CV
44 Butler Pl. #3D | Brooklyn, NY 11238 | ayen@thebirdinmyheart.com

A'yen Tran manages large-scale art and media projects for non-profits and artists, often in the interactive space. Most recently she directed logistics and external relations for Artist Swoon's nautical art projects with Deitch Studios. A'yen served as Online Director for non-profit organization Seeds of Peace before joining Swoon. She helped found art collective The Miss Rockaway Armada with whom she has installed artwork in the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art and floated 800 miles of the Mississippi River recording oral histories aboard homemade eco-art rafts and a solar-powered story-boat. She has spoken at PS1, MASSMoCA and the Conflux Festival, and is collaborating with Swoon in 2009 to float to the Venice Biennale on the Swimming Cities of Serenissima. A'yen holds a BA from Columbia University..

EDUCATION
Barnard College, Columbia University, New York, NY, Bachelor of Arts

EXPERIENCE
Project Manager | Artist SWOON
Fall 2007-Spring 2009: NY, NY

Plan, develop and manage website development, including budgeting, status reports, liaising between client and designer and assisting with CMS implementation
Oversee external relations and messaging, liaise with members of the print, television and online media, securing three pieces in the New York Times in 2008
Managing relationships with national and international authorities such as police and Coast Guard, securing event permits
Scouted and secured performance locations and community hosts for 75 person crew during three week art performance tour on the Hudson River “Swimming Cities of Switchback Sea ”
Interim staff and studio management for staff of ten

Freelance Media Strategy Consultant
Ongoing: NY, NY
Focus on non-profit organizations and artists: Assess organizational needs and resources, plan media campaigns with comprehensive online strategy and execution. Draft business plans and technical specifications for online community sites.

Online Director | Seeds of Peace
Winter 2006-Fall 2007: NY, NY

Managed implementation of scalable, robust new Constituent Relationship Management (CRM) and Drupal Content Management System (CMS), at a savings of 83.5% in annual website maintenance costs
Drafted RFP for organization's online community, fundraised
Managed all aspects of online production including staffing and budgeting and regular reporting
Worked closely with Director of Communications to produce appropriate messaging and images

Managing Director | African-American Policy Forum at Columbia Law School
Winter 2006-Summer 2007: NY, NY

Oversaw operations, including budget development, grant administration and event logistics
Managed website overhaul and redesign, maintained AAPF website and web initiatives

Director of New Media | NextNext Entertainment
Summer 2004-Winter 2006: NY, NY

Directed and managed design and development of online community featuring flash video chatrooms & digital storytelling user profiles that were used by the United Nations at World Summit on the Information Society
Managed content flow, online community and outreach
Wrote successful grant applications for youth-media website & online community
Co-developed television show featuring video conferences between Iraqi youth and U.S.-based youth for MTV's 'Choose or Lose' campaign

Director of Outreach | Downtown for Democracy (D4D)
Summer 2004- February 2006: NY, NY

Mobilized volunteers in the young NYC creative community to travel to swing states for field work
Developed press releases; liaised with press including the Washington Post, New York Magazine, New York Times, Time Out NY; coordinated extensive online outreach around 2004 election and events.
Recruited, corresponded with and managed volunteers for large-scale cultural events in New York

ART / DOCUMENTARY / ACTIVISM PROJECTS
"Swimming Cities of Switchback Sea," Deitch Projects, New York, 2008
performer, logistician, spokesperson for floating installation and performance piece (Collaboration with Artist SWOON)

"Light Body" Salon Adelphi, New York, 2008
solo installation of paper tunnels and light sculpture

"Being Here is Better Than Wishing We'd Stayed," MassMoCA, Massachusetts, April 2007- June 2008
interactive group installation, created Story Mill installation for visitors to add their wishes and memories to the installation (collaboration with the Miss Rockaway Armada)

Story Boat, Miss Rockaway Armada, Mississippi River, 2006-2007 (production in progress)
recorded stories of strangers along the Mississippi Rivera aboard solar powered fishing boat (collaboration with Todd Chandler)

Miss Rockaway Armada, Mississippi River, 2006-2007
logistician, spokesperson, builder for the art collective's floating installation and utopian living experiment: 800 miles down the river on homemade rafts made of recycled materials

Our Bodies Ourselves, 2006
contributed a story for 2006 edition of the feminist health resource book

I Had an Abortion project, New York, 2005-2008
spokesperson and participant in Jennifer Baumgardner's pro-choice book and film

HONORS
Tow Fellowship for thesis research at the British Library, Jesse Scheman Scholarship, Jessica Patt '89 Community Service Internship Grant, Barnard Award for Student Leadership.

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
New York Times "A Floating City with Junkyard Roots" August 2008
Artnet TV "SWOON" September 2008
Boston Globe "Spare Parts Become Interactive Art" April 2008
New York Times "Art Down the Mississippi. At Least, That's the Plan." August 2006
New York Times "Constituency of Cool" October 2005

SKILLS / INTERESTS
CMS and CRM softwares; social media tools; basic HTML and PHP; database software including Raiser's Edge. MS Office, QuickBooks, Quark, Adobe Photoshop, strong web research skills, Mac/PC

Conversational Spanish

Copy writing, excellent research, public speaking, communication and organizing skills

Water travel, oral history, sustainable technology, junk rafts, choral singing, street art