UPPER WEST SIDE — Big name artists Mark Rothko, Kiki Smith and Robert Longo are featured in a new exhibit seeking to bring attention to the Earth's dwindling water supply.
"The Value of Water," which just opened at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine and runs through to March 2012, puts the spotlight on the precious resource and will "highlight the need for clean water as a requirement for civilization and peace," according to statement from the cathedral.
"There's nothing new about artistic engagement with water; what's new is that we have reached a planet-wide crisis point in the availability of fresh water," said The Very Reverend Dr. James Kowalski, Dean of the Cathedral, in a statement.
"In New York City, where 70 percent of residents rent and a majority work in large buildings, awareness and control of water use is especially difficult to measure or maintain."
Along with the exhibit of paintings, sculptures and installations, the cathedral will be hosting events with water activists and writers. In October, professional actors will read from poet and translator Stephen Mitchell's new translation of "The Iliad," which cathedral officials say is of particular interest now "because water, like oil, has the potential to drag the world into decade-long wars."
The cathedral also plans an "Evening of Witness," tentatively scheduled for March, that will recognize water disasters of the last decade with storytelling and an all-night vigil.
The "Value of Water" is part of an ongoing multi-year effort by the cathedral to raise public awareness around water issues, said the cathedral's newsletter editor, Margaret Diehl. While data and lectures by experts are valuable in educating the public, art can reach an audience on a different level, Diehl told DNAinfo.
"We believe that art is something that puts people in a different state of mind," Diehl said. "When you’re opened up, you can take things in at a deeper level. That’s something that's very important with the water crisis. Hearing the facts hasn’t been enough. People have to feel it in their gut."
St. John the Divine is at 1047 Amsterdam Avenue and West 112th Street. Check the cathedral's website for more details on "The Value of Water."
