W like Water, 2021 Lab glass, steel, vinyl tubes, water filters, black manganese, white lead, water pump, tap water, live fish, and gator board, 55 x 48 x 12 inches. This is a water purifying installation with a water source, filters, and clean water pool where some delicate species live. The quality of the purification depends on the balance of the system, and the process is cyclic and endless. It could be an ecosystem model, social organization, or a mixture of both. The unclean water enters at the top and there are left and right ways. The right way flows through a black control valve, and at the left side is positioned a white valve. Both valves lead to water filters. The filter stations are transparent and have double glass walls. In between them are stored toxic pigments, White Lead on the left one and Black Manganese on the right. Toxins have no contact with the purifying water because of the air pressure in the system. Filters, air in the tubes, and the toxic pigments are in perfect balance, and water flows. Inside the pool at the bottom leaves the fish. It lives in constant danger of sys- tem disruption that can kill it in seconds, but it does not understand it.
Hidden Garden, 2020 Glass, plastic, society garlic (Tulbaghia violacea), tap water, and gator board, 55 x 48 x 6 inches. Hidden Garden is an experiment with plants and water. Ten regular garden plants were exposed to tap water samples from the five cities with the best and worst water quality in the United States. A time-lapse video captured the plants’ behavior over four weeks. Six plants died during the experiment, while four are still alive. The video ends with a table showing the ten cities and the demographics of their populations. This work leads to thoughts that water has memories, and that it reflects the places and people’s lives where it was collected.
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