Waterlines
December 15, 2022 – March 22, 2023 | Curated by Arlinda Shtuni (Community Curator)
Curated by Community Curator, Arlinda Shtuni, Waterlines: Stories of Urban Ebb and Flow presents newly rendered works by five noted local artists that invite us to consider the ecological, spiritual, and social dimensions of water and ask us to reawaken our personal connection with it. What is your relationship with water? Take the water questionnaire: https://artsalon.survey.fm/waterlines-questionnaire.
Hand drawn map image by Caitlin & Misha
Curator:
Arlinda Shtuni | learn more in bio below
Participating Artists:
A+J Art + Design/ Ann Hirsch + Jeremy Angier
As human beings, we are powerfully drawn to water. Every important passage of our lives is touched by water. However, as urban dwellers, we often have an abstract connection to it, as invisible infrastructures and complex systems of water lines bring it to us. How has our need for water shaped the city over time? And as our cities densify and water cycles change, how can we envision the future? How will we navigate droughts and floods, learn to adapt to our changing environment, and move in new ways?
The exhibit also showcases, Dialogues with Water, a site-specific installation of soundscapes and sound acousmatic works by a group of Northeastern University music students guided by Pr. Hubert Ho. From inviting us to follow the journey of underground water rise to the surface, to letting us meditate near calm waters, and thrusting us into a storm, these aesthetically eclectic pieces respond to the exhibit in myriad ways. At times, the sonic landscapes meld naturally with the artworks; at others, the sounds work in counterpoint with them, prompting full immersion and deep reflection on our complicated relationship with water.
Programming
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Opening Public Reception: Thursday, December 15, 6-8pm (in-person at Museum). Admission: $5/person, active Museum members free. Space is limited, reserve your spot today.
Curator Tour with Arlinda Shtuni: Saturday, February 18, 5–6pm (in-person at Museum). Admission: $10/person, active Museum members free. Tickets available soon.
Dinosaur Annex Music Assemble (Performance): Sunday, March 12, 3–4:30pm (in-person at Museum). Admission: $25/person, active Museum members admission: $20/person with code MEMBER.
Water Meditations: 20 minute long meditations occurring on the following dates and times. Admission: $5/person and includes access to the exhibition. Active Museum members free with code in link below.
Wednesday, March 22 (World Water Day) at 7:30pm
Water Walking Tour: Sunday, March 19, 1–2:30pm. Admission: $10/person, active Museum members free.
World Water Day Celebration Event: Wednesday, March 22, 6pm (in-person at Museum). Admission: $10/person, active Museum members free.
General Admission: $5; Museum members free.
Event Admission: $10; Museum members free.
For the Museum’s open hours and events check out our event schedule.
An 1853 Somerville Water Map is available for purchase at the merchandise shop. Learn more here.
About Arlinda Shtuni
As a Somerville-based curator, Arlinda has organized successful art shows, literary, and musical salons at local galleries and other art spaces including the Nave Gallery, the French Cultural Center, the Dante Alighieri Society, I AM Books, and others.
Having recently held a communications and curatorial role at the oldest architecture firm in Boston, Shepley Bulfinch, she directly engages with exploring the inextricable role of water in urban development and the concerns and opportunities around climate change, especially for a coastal community such as Boston.
Learn more about the Community Curator program.
This program is supported in part by a grant from the Somerville Arts Council, a local agency supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
This program is made possible by a grant from Mass Humanities, which provided funding through the National Endowment for the Humanities via the American Rescue Plan.
Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this exhibition do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.