olivia weise
38°54'4"N 77°4'14"W
(Potomac River & Key Bridge)
38°54'20"N 77°5'41"W
(Windy Run & G.W. Parkway)
38°55'10"N 77°6'28"W
(Donaldson Run & G.W. Parkway)
38°55'31"N 77°6'52"W
(Gulf Branch & G.W. Parkway)
38°55'40"N 77°7'6"W
(Pimmit Run & G.W. Parkway)
38°55'46"N 77°6'59"W
(Potomac River & Chain Bridge)
ÁGUA VIVA
is a series of prints made with light-sensitive paper submerged in sampled water from the Potomac River and adjoining streams along the Potomac Heritage Trail in Arlington, VA.
Interactions between organic substances in the water and the chemistry of analog photographic paper created these six images, which are paired with a soundtrack of field recordings made simultaneously as water samples were collected from locations along the trail.
The series was made in the spring and summer of 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic and increasing urgency of climate change weighed on my daily thoughts; frequent hikes along the Potomac River created the physical and mental space to process these events, and find a stabilizing balance between my personal world and the natural environment. It is named after the book Água Viva (“living water”) by Clarice Lispector, a realization of flow-of-consciousness expression that I find comforting and inspiring.