Rio Grande Flow
A collaboration between art and geology that considers the past, present and future flow of the Rio Grande
Each sand peel is a unique indexical object taken from the sediment in a very specific point along the Rio Grande. Each specific point is a nexus of other points and lines that expand in many directions in time and space. This body of work investigates the human and natural/geologic relations that overlap and interlace along the body of the river. It attempts to unpack and reweave the human cultural and geopolitical stories and the story of the earth.
Rio Grande Story - Upper Rio Grande
Sand peel sites along the Upper Rio Grande
Currently there are 11 sand peel sculptures created from sediment in the upper Rio Grande river system.
Our journey begins at Stony Pass, the headwaters of the Rio Grande in southern Colorado. Stony Pass, on the Continental Divide, naturally divides the flow of water between the Rio Grande to the east and the Colorado River to the west. Further to the east in Colorado, water flows west from Medano Pass and Blanca Peak (the highest point in the Rio Grande basin) to drain towards Great Sand Dunes National Park and ultimately to the Rio Grande. Water flowing east from Medano Pass and Blanca Peak flows towards the Mississippi River.
The 11 sand peel sculptures embody the history of native peoples, Spanish colonization, manifest destiny, westward expansion, technological feats in the 19th and 20th centuries (i.e., the transcontinental railroad and the atomic bomb), water management and the eons-old interplay between land and water (billions of years).
Great Sand Dunes National Park
In fall 2019, we received a research permit to capture sand peels in Great Sand Dunes National Park (GSD). Two sand peel sculptures have been created at the interface of the dunes and Medano Creek, which drains into the Rio Grande, through this partnership.
Through our collaboration with GSD we were able to create a how-to instructional video demonstrating the process of creating a sand peel. The final video is a combination of footage taken from GSD and Houston, Texas.