While fresh water scarcity is a global concern of increasing magnitude, it is often brushed aside as we don’t encounter its implications directly.  As part of an effort to develop an interactive art piece to be incorporated into the new SUB atrium, the goal of this project is to engage students on a daily basis and to point to this international issue.

As described by the diagrams below, the installation consists of a water sculpture, and a set of steps leading up to a platform that serves as a lounge area. The water sculpture features the top container of an hourglass that is filled with water. Drop by drop, the water drains from this receptacle and is channeled through a small opening of the platform floor and collected into a reservoir situated below it. Students interact with the installation by using the steps leading to the lounge. The steps are part of a pumping system that uses the weight of the participants to pump the water from the bottom reservoir to the top of the hourglass. Because the water is ever dripping from the hourglass, the supply is exhausted if there are no participants for an extended period of time.

The reference to an hourglass for this interactive installation is a deliberate one, as it points to an urgency of action. Passersby respond by participating and climbing the steps that generate the kinetic energy necessary to pump the water back into the hourglass. Analogously, water scarcity is a global issue that requires immediate attention. On the platform and steps, we would inscribe facts about water scarcity and ways that students can address the issue.

Our intent is also grounded in a desire to design a sustainable installation. In addition to powering the water sculpture with kinetic energy generated by participants, the whole would be made from recycled steel and wood (such as bamboo).

One important challenge will be to design the installation such that it is safe and fool proof. Railing will likely have to be included in order to make the steps secure.

Funding awarded: $787

Project started: February 2012

Note: This project is one of five sustainability art prototype projects. Each group will submit a prototype for consideration by the New SUB Sustainability Working Group and New SUB Project Committee, and a group will be commissioned to create a scaled-up project for the New SUB Atrium .

Project Updates

• New SUB Sustainability Art: Hourglass | August Update
• New SUB Sustainability Art: Hourglass | June Update
• New SUB Sustainability Art: Hourglass | May Update
• New SUB Sustainability Art: Hourglass