Events

All events are free and take place at UMMA unless otherwise noted.

Fri
Oct 7
5:00pm – 8:00pm
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The Ways of Water: Art, Activism, and Ecologies Symposium Reception with performance by The Sister Tour and artist tour of Watershed exhibition

This symposium brings together a diverse group of practitioners, including artists, designers, activists, scholars, scientists, policy analysts, urban planners, and thinkers to discuss what may well be the most important issue of our time: access to clean water and the fight for environmental justice. 

5:00 pm: Reception and refreshments with Performance by The Sister Tour
Location: UMMA, Lizzie & Jonathan Tisch Apse (1st floor)

Flint-based artists, The Sister Tour, will share their performance The Water Remembers, a creative response and expression of resilience for the people of Flint. Performed by: Shea Cobb aka Phiresis, Zion Brown, Amber Hasan, Os'Zaria Terry-Dye, London Spearman, Ashlynn Spearman, Niecole Middleton aka Big Juicy, Oliser Terry-Dye, and DeShano Demps Jr.

6:30 pm: Exhibition tour of Watershed, led by UMMA curator Jennifer Friess
Location: UMMA, Alfred A. Taubman I (2nd floor)

Featuring exhibition artists Kate Levy, Doug Fogelson, Shanna Merola, Bonnie Devine, Rozalinda Borcilă, and Senghor Reid.

Held in partnership with the University of Michigan Museum of Art and the Stamps Gallery and building on themes present in the UMMA exhibition Watershed and Stamps Gallery’s LaToya Ruby Frazier: Flint is Family in Three Acts, The Ways of Water symposium continues to unravel the story of water, its critical role, and the way it connects us all. 

Additional information and full 2-day schedule.

The Ways of Water: Art, Activism, and Ecologies symposium is co-presented by Stamps Gallery and UMMA in partnership with UMMNH and the University of Michigan Library. It is co-sponsored by U-M Matthaei Botanical Gardens and U-M Joseph A. Labadie Collection and supported by the U-M Office of the Vice President for Research and The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. 

 



Lead support for this exhibition is provided by the U-M Office of the Provost, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Michigan Arts and Culture Council, Susan and Richard Gutow, and the U-M Institute for the Humanities. Additional generous support is provided by the U-M School for Environment and Sustainability, Graham Sustainability Institute, and the Department of English Language and Literature. Special thanks to Margaret Noodin and Michael Zimmerman, Jr. for translating the gallery texts into Anishinaabemowin.