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.