Amy Sharrocks in the Edmond J. Safra Fountain Court, Museum of Water at Somerset House (© Ruth Corney www.ruthcorney.com)
When: 16th April 2014, 12 noon – 6pm
Where: Edmond J. Safra Fountain Court, Somerset House, Strand, London WC2R 1LA
£: Free
What is it?
Head to the Edmond J. Safra Fountain Court at Somerset House on Wednesday 16th April to donate a sample of water to the Museum of Water. The Museum of Water is an art installation which will be coming to Somerset House from 6th June 2014. The donations will be collected by the artist, Amy Sharrocks, and a team of archivists. People can donate anything from tears to Thames water, in any containers or bottles they wish.
Accumulated over two years from different sites worldwide, Museum of Water is a collection of publicly donated water and accompanying stories brought together by live artist, sculptor and film-maker Amy Sharrocks. The live artwork will invite people to browse and interact with the Museum’s collection in the atmospheric depths of Somerset House’s Lightwells and Deadhouse.
The collection of several hundred bottles includes water from a holy river in India, a burst London water main, 20-year-old evaporated snow from Maine, condensation from a Falmouth window, a new-born baby’s bath water, Norwegian spit, two different breaths and water from a bedside table said to be infused with dreams.
Museum of Water at Somerset House (© Ruth Corney www.ruthcorney.com)
The bottles, in their myriad of shapes and sizes, will fill the walls and alcoves in a unique large-scale installation. Soundscapes of stories from donors will flow through the exhibition and water ‘custodians’ will be on hand to guide visitors through the bottles and stories, considering our relationship with the most precious liquid the world has to offer.
Somerset House has a rich relationship with water dating back to the 16th century. A strategic site onto the Thames thoroughfare, Somerset House was built with a front door onto the river. Originally a grand riverside palace, it was later occupied by the Navy Board in the 18th and 19th centuries. Highlighting the historical connection and returning the river to Somerset House there will be a room flooded with Thames river water. The water will be transported from the river in buckets by a human chain for the opening day of the exhibition and returned to the river in the same way on the final day.
More info: www.somersethouse.org.uk