RiverSong, an exhibit of quilts celebrating the Mississippi River Basin, will be on view at the Main Library this May and June.
Here, we go behind the exhibit to learn more about its curator, local artist Lindsay Olson (pictured above, along with her quilt “Dry Wells”).
On the water, an artist falls in love with science
“Like a lot of artists, I tried really hard to avoid science and math in my student days,” says Oak Park artist Lindsay Olson.
But it was during a canoe trip on the Cal-Sag Channel in southwestern Cook County in 2012 that Lindsay began falling in love with science.
While canoeing, she and her husband came upon one of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District (MWRD)’s SEPA stations. Lindsay was fascinated with the structure—the MWRD calls them “waterfalls with a purpose,” as the stations are designed to aerate the water, improving habitat for fish, birds, and other animals.
Later, as she was researching the SEPA station, Lindsay got the idea to propose becoming the MWRD’s first visiting artist.
One of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District’s Sidestream Elevated Pool Aeration (SEPA) stations, located in Blue Island, Illinois.
When the agency said yes, Lindsay went looking for artistic inspiration.
The Stickney Water Reclamation Plant, located at the geographic low spot of Cook County, is where the wastewater treatment process begins. And that’s where she found herself, a textile artist and instructor at Columbia College Chicago, eagerly trying to understand how the MWRD turns our sewage into clean water.
‘What have I gotten myself into?’
At first, Lindsay says, she felt out of her depth, overwhelmed by all the valves and pipes, and assaulted by the loud noises of the pumps. “I thought, ‘What have I gotten myself into?’”
The only thing to do, she decided, was to take out her sketchbook and sit. “Artists are trained to observe deeply, to think deeply,” she says.
And sure enough, she started to notice the order in the system—engineers had designed the system with color-coded pipes.
“All of a sudden, I had a way in,” she says, “through this shared experience of color.”
As a textile artist, Lindsay interpreted the science of wastewater treatment through a body of embellished artworks. Using silk, linen, wool, denim, and cotton, she stitched together colorful panels depicting bacteria and amoebas (the microbes that clean our water), aeration tanks, and even the trident of Poseidon, the mythic Greek god of the seas.
Blending art, science & tech
Flowing from her experience with the MWRD, Lindsay went on to become an artist in residence with other science and technology institutions, including the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and the Wetlands Initiative.
She currently serves as the first artist in residence at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington, where she’s exploring the subject of hydropower. (Above, she’s pictured doing just that, at the McNary Lock and Dam in Washington state.)
You can learn more about Lindsay and her work, and see many examples of her creativity and skill (art about fungi! ocean acoustics! quarks!) on her website.
RiverSong on view May 19–June 27
This May and June, a textile exhibit that Lindsay curated will be on view in the Main Library Gallery.
RiverSong is a collection of quilts by members of the Studio Art Quilt Association (SAQA), Illinois and Wisconsin region. Each explores aspects of the Mississippi River Basin, the vast and intricate watershed that spans one-third of North America.
Some pieces portray life on the river, including American pelicans, a belted kingfisher, and all kinds of insects. Others center on personal stories—two clasped hands over the river where one quilter and her partner fell in love.
In addition to curating the exhibit, Lindsay has included a quilt, “Dry Wells,” that highlights groundwater depletion in Illinois and its importance as both a source of drinking water and an agricultural necessity (pictured at the top of this post).
RiverSong, which has been traveling around the Midwest since last fall, made its debut at Downers Grove Public Library. It will be on view at Oak Park Public Library May 19–June 27, in the Main Library Gallery during regular hours.
“Librarians in general have been so supportive of my work,” Lindsay says. “Librarians help me advocate for the value of science and fine art in public spaces that are open to everyone.”
You can meet Lindsey and some of the other SAQA artists at an artist reception and gallery talk on Thursday, June 4, 6:30 pm, in the Main Library Gallery.