Collaborative听Exhibit鈥檚听Connects Art and Ecosystems
Image by Ed Brennen
01/29/2020
By David Perry
础谤迟颈蝉迟听贰惫别濒测苍听搁测诲锄听颈蝉听颈苍 Mahoney Gallery听on South Campus carefully working听about听500听drinking听glasses into the shape of the Merrimack River.听She听arranges听them to resemble its vast mouth, its听turns and some long stretches听now used for听recreation.
Rydz鈥� installation is听part of 鈥淟ocal Ecologies,鈥澨齛n exhibition dropping anchor at UML through听March 6. It has already docked at galleries at UMass Boston and UMass Dartmouth. A听collaborative effort between听the three听UMass听campuses,听the听traveling exhibition听includes听newly听commissioned works and听public听programming; its goal is to听spark听discussions, using听location-based art听that responds to听the region鈥檚听environmental and ecological issues.听
The exhibit brings together artists, scientists,听historians听and community members who are听engaged with听the听coastal and river ecosystems听and the region鈥檚 history.听
鈥淲e are the last stop,鈥� says Kirsten Swenson, a UML associate professor and art history coordinator who听is one of the exhibit organizers.听鈥淲hat is cool about this three-campus exhibition听is听that听each campus听is unique in terms of the features of the听landscapes.听At 51视频,听we have the Merrimack听River.听The exhibit听is听designed to relate the landscapes to the ecological history and cultural significance of each place.鈥澨�
Local Ecologies centers around the work of eight artists, including Rydz,听but it is also an exhibit designed to make viewers take a deeper look at the natural world around them 鈥� especially the Merrimack River.听It melds art, science and history into听a show that works on multiple levels, notes Swenson.听
鈥淚t explores a sense of ecology for the natural, cultural and economic aspects of each place,鈥澨齭he says. 鈥淎听lot of the exhibit is research-based, so听vision alone is not necessarily the point.鈥�
鈥淢ore than half a million people rely on the Merrimack River for their drinking water,鈥澨齨otes Rydz, taking a break from glass placement. 鈥淭here are chemicals that challenge the water, and when听there鈥檚听a heavy rain, raw sewage can overwhelm treatment plants and enter the river.鈥澨�
Another of the exhibit鈥檚 artists is Andrew Yang, associate professor of听liberal听arts听at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago,听whose听work includes听installation art听and collage.听Yang鈥檚 contributions include two giant snake-shaped banners made of waste plastics; one of each is suspended in the O鈥橪eary and Lydon libraries.听
They are 鈥渁 metaphor for our troubled relationship with plastics,鈥� he says in a description of his work.
On Jan. 30,听Rydz conducted a workshop in Swenson鈥檚 Contemporary Art History class,听including panels of pH paper with Merrimack River water.听
On Feb. 25,听Rydz听returns for a 3 p.m. workshop open to the campus community听that will be held听in听the听Mahoney Gallery. There will be more pH paper painting with river water, as well as a 4 p.m. panel discussion with听Asst. Prof.听Misha Rabinovich听and听Asst. Prof. Caitlin Foley of Art & Design,听Assoc. Teaching听Prof. Lori Weeden听of the听Kennedy College of Sciences and John听Macone听of the Merrimack River Watershed Council.听Following the discussion, an opening reception in the gallery听will begin at 5:30 p.m.听
But on this recent day before the exhibit opened,听Rydz听arranges the glasses, all听purchased听from New Hampshire and Massachusetts thrift shops within a few miles of the Merrimack River. The听glasses听were designed听to hold everything from fruit cocktails听to听highballs. Some听of the glasses听very likely听held drinking water from the Merrimack. Old, new, tall听and squat, the glasses on the floor represent the water of the river that once gave Lowell its lifeblood.听
The river, like glass, is fragile, notes Rydz, and it is far from alone: 鈥淪ome of the problems we discuss speak to things happening in Lowell. But they also occur all over.鈥�