Down the Gowanus (2011)

Commissioned by Parsons and organized by The Canary Project – The New School for Design, this research and curatorial workshop pivoted around an intensive interdisciplinary investigation and a voyage down the Gowanus Canal in Brooklyn. The mission of the workshop was to create a body of work that meditates on what it means to regard the Gowanus as Nature. Once a tidal inlet of creeks, marshes and meadows, the Gowanus Canal was transformed into a bustling industrial ecosystem that fueled Brooklyn’s growth. This led to severe pollution of the waters and a recent EPA Superfund site designation, mandating a massive cleanup. The workshop was predicated on a belief that visual art can be a form of research and that such research makes valuable contributions to a given discourse.  The Canary Project invited Dylan and Jean to visit the workshop as guest speakers and to provide some of our boats to bring the Parsons students out onto the canal. More information about the project, as well as links to some of the video TCP produced is here.

Pictured at right: Liberum Kayak, 2011, locally sourced bamboo, plywood, re-purposed vinyl museum signage, zip ties, epoxy, and upholstery tacks, 14’ x 36′.

Exhibited:

Parsons the New School (U-N-F-O-L-D / Down the Gowanus) – top

The Great American Can Factory – bottom