This project documents the histories and intersections of plant, animal, and human life in still-evolving spaces along the corridor of the Erie Canal. Using the framework of weaving to collect and analyze particular specimens over the passage of time, I walked evenly spaced segments of the Erie Canal from west to east, filming my path and documenting plant life along the waterways.
Woven transects after walking: Pendleton, Lockport, Medina, Cedar Bay
Woven transects after walking: Pendleton, Lockport, Medina, Cedar Bay
Documenting and sharing the complexity of the Erie Canal’s existence allows us to interrogate dominant narratives and question past, present, and future ecosystem impacts of the Erie Canal. The project explores existing reciprocal human-animal-plant relationships through food and seed dispersal and finds opportunities to strengthen these relationships. The hope is that by interrogating dominant narratives and acknowledging the landscape as its own being, visitors can start to connect more meaningfully with the land while understanding their own histories and place within it.
Detail of molded and aged weavings.