Susan Shantz: Confluence

×

Expand

Susan Shantz, "Water Basin I (Saskatchewan River)," 2018-2019

installation, four tarps, 259.1 x 1280.2 x 853.4 cm

In its presentation of installation, bookworks, embroidered objects, photographs and video, Confluence is the result of Saskatoon artist Susan Shantz’ artistic and scientific exploration into the water sources that sustain our province. From the glaciers in the Rocky Mountains of Alberta, water flows across the prairies in the South and North Saskatchewan Rivers, joining to create an enormous delta near the Manitoba border.

Shantz states, “While I experience the river near my home as a natural phenomenon and place of beauty, after learning more about the river from scientific and environmental perspectives, I have come to realize it is a highly-managed water source. It sustains us, but with a cost for those downstream. Drawing on field trips to sites along the river, I use a variety media (from textiles to videography) to consider the currents that connect us in this prairie water basin.”

Shantz’ work encourages viewers to consider the interconnectedness and fragility of our water sources, the environmental impacts of human progress on our water systems and how these impacts will ultimately affect us all.