Michigan State University will launch Water Moves MSU, a university-wide initiative fostering scientific innovation and cultural and artistic expression inspired by water, at 6 p.m. Oct. 4 at the Eli and Edythe Broad Art Museum.
Free and open to the public, speakers include MSU President Lou Anna K. Simon; Prabu David, dean of the College of Communication Arts and Sciences, Joan Rose, 2016 recipient of the Stockholm Water Prize; Marc-Oliver Wahler, director of the Broad Art Museum; Elizabeth LaPensee, assistant professor, media and information and writing, rhetoric and American cultures; and Linda Demmer, local artist.
Water Moves MSU will address the most important water problems facing societies across the globe. The 18-month initiative aims to inform and educate the campus and greater community about water-related research, creative work and cultural outreach and engagement happening at MSU.
As the first project of Water Moves MSU, the Broad Art Museum is hosting the Red Cedar River Project, a series of outdoor, site-specific installations of photographs by artist Gideon Mendel along the banks of the Red Cedar River.
“Drowning World” is a series Mendel has been developing for nearly a decade, documenting the global magnitude of climate change through the immediate experiences of individuals. With a steel frame to support the images, the works appear to float upon the surface of the Red Cedar.
In addition, Joan Rose will be launching a drinking fountain challenge to students, asking them to design a water fountain of the future that is innovative in both function and form.