The Sun Valley Center for the Arts' latest multi-disciplinary exhibition, "Water," presents the work of artists who engage the subject of water from political, environmental, ecological and cultural perspectives. Water has shaped the landscape of the American West and it shapes the way we live today.
The show has presented films, talks and art at The Center in Ketchum. The "Water" exhibition also includes a smaller show, "Source/Resource: Ranching and Water in the West," at The Center in Hailey.
On view until Nov. 12, "Source/Resource: Ranching and Water in the West" pairs early 20th-century photos from the archives of the Idaho State Historical Society with contemporary photos by Benjamin Ditto of Western ranches and ranchers.
"Idaho farmers and ranchers have been managing water in order to sustain their livelihoods since the mid 1800s," said The Center's curator of visual arts, Courtney Gilbert, "The historical photos show everything from snow collection fences and water wheels to opening celebrations of different dams and canals to men digging irrigation trenches."
Ditto's color photographs, taken from a portfolio of images he made starting in 2007, explore water usage in the 21st century. Prompted by the news that the Southern Nevada Water Authority was planning to pipe water from the aquifer under the Great Basin, in northern Nevada and Utah, to Las Vegas, Ditto began to travel through the Snake Valley with camera in hand. His photographs capture a way of life that has changed little over the last hundred years—and also the challenges farmers and ranchers face in our arid environment.
An adventurer whose passion for the outdoors and for photography has taken him from Greenland to Peru, Ditto said he is interested in "the symbiotic relationship that occurs as humans alter the environment to suit their needs and the extent to which the landscape shapes the lives and development of its inhabitants."
"To this end, I photograph wetlands, springs, residents who rely on this resource for their livelihood, and any indication of interaction between the two."
Gallery hours in Hailey are from 2--6 p.m. on Wednesdays and admission is free.
Sabina Dana Plasse: splasse@mtexpress.com
“Untitled from Great Basin Water” by Benjamin Ditto. Photograph at the Sun Valley Center for the Arts in Hailey.
