𝙏𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙫𝙚 𝙔𝙖𝙧𝙙𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙏𝙧𝙖𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝘾𝙡𝙤𝙩𝙝 (2024) India Ink on ghost monoprints, wooden ladders, clay pipes, linen thread, 22” x 35’ x 8′
Installation Audio: 4 minutes, 20 seconds
This piece is part of a research-based body of work investigating the historical and socio-political ecologies of Cotton Hollow, a nature preserve in South Glastonbury, Connecticut. Before white settlers arrived it was the winter home of the Nayaug, a tribe of the Wangunk, part of the Algonquin federation. When English settlers moved in, they harnessed—for 200 years—the power of the water in service of multiple industries (anchor works, lumber yard, cotton mill, gun powder factory, and more), forever altering the landscape. In 1636, English settlers came across the Connecticut river and purportedly made an agreement with the local sachem, Sowheag, to use the land. Thirty-five years later, in 1671, a confirmatory deed was written, effectively trading the town of Glastonbury, approximately 50 square miles today, for twelve yards of trading cloth. Here, I've recreated those twelve yards, using monoprints of material collected at the site layered with inky searching lines that start with observational drawing and get lost on the way. There is much the historical record can't tell us, so I intentionally hold space for material memory and a felt sense. The audio consists of recordings from Roaring Brook in Cotton Hollow as well as my voice, reading and making sense of the language in the deed. Check that out on my website.
This piece is on display this week in a pop-up exhibit at Emerson College, at 10 Boylston Place, with the opening on Monday from 5 - 7 pm. Curated by
@sophiecaitlindodd @emersoncontemporary @emersoncuratorialpractices
#cottonhollow #glastonburyct #southglastonbury #cottonhollownaturepreserve
@glastonbury_historical_society #ctarts
