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StreamLines: Tamed Water Mary Miss/City as Living Laboratory created a series of installations for StreamLines along five major waterways in Indianapolis. The theme for the site at Pogue’s Run was “Tamed Water” and explored water infrastructure. Topics at the site included precipitation, infrastructure, impervious surface, combined sewer, buried stream and grey water.
Water is crucial to the functioning of our cities: for transport, drinking, and industrial uses. But it can be a nuisance as well, such as during a flood. We have designed elaborate ways to direct water where we want it and redirect unwanted water to build towns and cities unimpeded by streams or rainfall. One of the most extreme examples in Indianapolis is at Pogue’s Run, a former woodland stream that has been partially diverted into an underground tunnel for over a mile before it spills into the White River west of downtown, so that the grid of city streets and buildings could be built over the stream.
StreamLines was an interactive, place-based project that merged the sciences and the arts to advance the community’s understanding and appreciation of Indianapolis’ waterways. This work was made possible by a grant from the National Science Foundation and was modeled on the City as Living Laboratory/FRAMEWORK. StreamLines featured a collection of installations along Indianapolis’ waterways and adjacent greenspaces inviting the community to learn, explore and experience the science of local water systems through visual art, poetry, dance and music. StreamLines was administered by the Center for Urban Ecology at Butler University. For more information, visit StreamLines.org or on social media as @StreamLinesIndy.
StreamLines: Water Rises, Water Falls In 2015 and 2016, Mary Miss/City as Living Laboratory created a series of installations for StreamLines along five major waterways in Indianapolis. The theme for the site at the White River was “Water Rises, Water Falls” and explores water in the atmosphere. Scientific topics for this site included atmosphere, precipitation, infrastructure, watershed, albedo, land cover and heat island.
The White River is one of the largest rivers in Indiana, flowing for over 350 miles from Randolph County, through the heart of Indianapolis and into the Wabash River. This river connects the city to the rest of the state through snowmelt, rainwater, and smaller streams that find their way to the river’s rainfall catchment area, also known as a watershed. The total White River basin watershed is nearly 6,000 square miles! The river was once wide and clear. Local Native Americans called it the Wapahani or “White Sands.” Although heavily polluted due to agricultural runoff and industrial usage, the river is cleaner than it was in the past.
StreamLines was an interactive, place-based project that merged the sciences and the arts to advance the community’s understanding and appreciation of Indianapolis’ waterways. This work was made possible by a grant from the National Science Foundation and was modeled on the City as Living Laboratory/FRAMEWORK. StreamLines featured a collection of installations along Indianapolis’ waterways and adjacent greenspaces inviting the community to learn, explore and experience the science of local water systems through visual art, poetry, dance and music. StreamLines was administered by the Center for Urban Ecology at Butler University. For more information, visit StreamLines.org or on social media as @StreamLinesIndy.
StreamLines: Changes Over Time Mary Miss/City as Living Laboratory created a series of installations for StreamLines along five major tributaries of Indianapolis. The theme for the site at Pleasant Run was “Changes Over Time”. Topics explored at the site included atmosphere, infrastructure, industry, contamination, restoration, groundwater and remediation.
Pleasant Run was formed at the end of the last Ice Age (about 12,000 years ago) when glaciers from the north carried rocks from as far away as Michigan and exposing portions of the Indiana limestone bedrock. This wild-flowing woodland stream changed when European settlers cleared forests to make way for industry along its banks. The nearby coke plant was an important source of fuel for steel manufacturing since the early-1900s, but consequently contaminated the area with pollutants until it closed in 2007. Today, our renewed focus on the environment is allowing life to flourish once again along the waterway.
StreamLines was an interactive, place-based project that merged the sciences and the arts to advance the community’s understanding and appreciation of Indianapolis’ waterways. This work was made possible by a grant from the National Science Foundation and was modeled on the City as Living Laboratory/FRAMEWORK. StreamLines featured a collection of installations along Indianapolis’ waterways and adjacent greenspaces inviting the community to learn, explore and experience the science of local water systems through visual art, poetry, dance and music. StreamLines was administered by the Center for Urban Ecology at Butler University. For more information, visit StreamLines.org or on social media as @StreamLinesIndy.
StreamLines: Water as a Resource Mary Miss/City as Living Laboratory created a series of installations for StreamLines along five major tributaries of Indianapolis. The theme for the site at the Central Canal was “Water as a Resource.” Topics at the site included precipitation, infrastructure, industry, engineering, recreation and ecosystem services.
Water is essential for transport and therefore many cities are built along waterways to facilitate the transport of goods. Canals represent some of the greatest engineering projects in history. This canal—an ambitious but failed attempt to connect local waterways with the Erie Canal—bankrupted Indiana in the 1800s. Although it was never fully completed, today it is the source of most of Indianapolis’ drinking water and the Towpath continues to provide a valuable resource for transport — not of goods, but of people on foot and wheels.
StreamLines was an interactive, place-based project that merged the sciences and the arts to advance the community’s understanding and appreciation of Indianapolis’ waterways. This work was made possible by a grant from the National Science Foundation and was modeled on the City as Living Laboratory/FRAMEWORK. StreamLines featured a collection of installations along Indianapolis’ waterways and adjacent greenspaces inviting the community to learn, explore and experience the science of local water systems through visual art, poetry, dance and music. StreamLines was administered by the Center for Urban Ecology at Butler University. For more information, visit StreamLines.org or on social media as @StreamLinesIndy.
StreamLines: Wild City Mary Miss/City as Living Laboratory created five installations for StreamLines including one at Fall Creek in Indianapolis. The theme for the site at Fall Creek was “Wild City” and explored waterways as a habitat corridor. Topics at the site included temperature, combined sewer, recreation, biodiversity, recreation, riparian, contamination and runoff.
Fall Creek, like many waterways around Indianapolis, is a haven for plants and animals. Aquatic mammals, birds, fish, turtles, insects, and other animals inhabit its waters and banks. The rich vegetation growing alongside the creek provides additional habitat for numerous creatures, as well as parkland for people to enjoy its natural beauty. The creek also acts as a wildlife highway that allows animals to move through the river or along its banks from one area to another. Over 30 species of fish and 90 species of birds can be found at Fall Creek!
StreamLines was an interactive, place-based project that merged the sciences and the arts to advance the community’s understanding and appreciation of Indianapolis’ waterways. This work was made possible by a grant from the National Science Foundation and was modeled on the City as Living Laboratory/FRAMEWORK. StreamLines featured a collection of installations along Indianapolis’ waterways and adjacent greenspaces inviting the community to learn, explore and experience the science of local water systems through visual art, poetry, dance and music. StreamLines was administered by the Center for Urban Ecology at Butler University. For more information, visit StreamLines.org or on social media as @StreamLinesIndy.
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