This work was produced by the Submergence Collective and part of the exhibition: Species In Peril Along the Rio Grande

Hand-made paper from cottonwood seed pods, native grassland seeds, naturally-dyed fibers, soil collected from the riverbed, ink made from black walnut and cottonwood leaves, grow lights, pine, soil

(dimensions variable)

The current stand of the most prolific cottonwood trees in the Middle Rio Grande Bosque are nearing the end of their lives. Cottonwoods grow when flooding occurs along the riparian zone, allowing for successful germination of seeds. With the rise of climate change and diversions upstream, there has not been a successful year of natural propagation since 1941. The decline of cottonwoods along the Rio Grande will change the entire ecosystem and habitat resulting in species migration and loss. The structure of the Bosque will take on a new composition, increasing aridity and exposure, advancing the desertification of the Southwestern ecology.

The mural was painted with soil collected from the riverbed, black walnut ink, and ink made from cottonwood chlorophyll. The mural depicts the topography of the Rio Grande floodplain, with the human built river diversion infrastructure overlaid, whose lines show a stark contrast to the river’s natural movement. Cottonwood seedlings are painted in a line at the height that flooding needs to occur in order for the seeds to germinate. Without the river’s natural flooding this vital species is dying out. The ink made from chlorophyll decays with light exposure and as the exhibition continues the painted seedlings fade.

Simultaneously, paper made from cottonwood seed pods and embedded with native plains seeds grows over a labyrinth of native animal tracks; their literal impacts pressed into the soil. This speaks to the loss of cottonwoods even further. If their canopy disappears the entire ecosystem will change and habitats for those animals will be lost.