River Water as Art Material?

It’s a wildly different encounter when facing a physical piece of art versus eyeing one on your computer screen.

That’s especially true for textured, translucent artist-made paper.

And gilded metal leaf.

Also, you know how there’s been way less opportunity to see artwork over the past two years, versus before the pandemic?

Get that real-life viewing experience this month, because I have several pieces at the WaterFire Arts Center store.

You’ll see a few Weathering: Providence River artworks on display—a fitting choice for WaterFire, an organization that brings people to downtown Providence by lighting fires on the river.

I used actual tidal river waters (questionable material, as we know) mixed with Miracle-Gro to oxidize copper, creating one-of-a-kind blue-green colors.

The shapes are inspired by Great Salt Cove, a lost tidal marsh that was located in present-day downtown Providence. And the papers are embedded with real-life Rhode Island seaweed and pondweeds.

These artworks are: