The Pod (2014) is part of the Capital Hill Alphabet Animal Art Project (CHAAAP) funded by the DC Department of Transportation and administered by the Capital Hill Arts Workshop. Selected artists were assigned a lamppost on a particular corner in the Capital Hill Historic District.  Each selected artist decided which animal to create with the stipulation that the first letter of the animal had to have the same first letter as the assigned street and weigh no more than seven pounds. Hence, the Narwhals of North Carolina Avenue and 2nd Street SE were conceived. 

Undine chose Narwhals  (out of the very few options for animals that start with the letter "N") because of their unique qualities and because many people are skeptical that these Arctic Ocean dwelling animals really exist.  This animal, sometimes called the Unicorn of the Sea, will hopefully get curious passers-by thinking and talking. Another bonus of choosing this animal for a Capital Hill project is its nostalgic connection to the Obama Campaign's real time data sharing computer program named Project Narwhal, which advanced campaign management to a new level of efficiency. 

Currently, only images of the process are available; hopefully, installation images will be posted soon. 
Other artists selected for the inaugural run of CHAAAP include: Beth Baldwin, Charles Bergen, Susan Champeny, Breon Gilleran, Carolina Mayorga, Davide Prete, Evan Reed, Novie Trump and John Yanson.


Many thanks to the following people for their involvement in the project: 
Hannah Jacobson, Project Manager and Bruce McKaig, Art Director
The selection committee: Carol Grissom, Amy Finkelstein, Bruce McKaig and Dawn Whitmore
Installation crew from the DC Department of Transportation: Leon Barnes and Robert Payton


For more information regarding the Alphabet Animal Project and to see The Pod being installed, visit www.thisplacehasavoice.info.
For more information about Project Narwhal, read this article Obama's White Whale by Sasha Issenberg.