Hidden Waterways Project
CITIES HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A BATTLEGROUND BETWEEN ENGINEERS AND WILDERNESS.
AS CITIES FLOURISHED, THEY SPRAWLED, DESTROYING OR INDELIBLY CHANGING THE
NATURAL ENVIRONMENT WHERE THEY WERE LOCATED. WATERWAYS ARE A CASE IN POINT.
ENGINEERS STRAIGHTENED, CHANNELED, AND BURIED THEM. THEY USED WATERWAYS TO
FLUSH WASTE. THEY BUILT ROADS AND RAIL THROUGH AND AROUND THEM. I BEGAN HIDDEN
WATERWAYS WITH A SURVEY OF TORONTO’S EXTENSIVE WATERSHED IN 2003.
THE SURVEY HAS CONTINUED IN OTHER WORLD CITIES, AS I SEARCH FOR WHAT IS OFTEN
HIDDEN IN THESE TRANSFORMATIONS—A PAST MELDING INTO THE FUTURE THAT
MIRRORS SPECIFIC LOCAL CULTURAL AND ECONOMIC CONDITIONS.
