Diversion

2022

Pump, pipework, filters, gravel foil flooring, a diversion of the River Main, coffee filters, bamboo dippers, stones, orange peel, custodians

 

For Diversion the river Main is redirected through the gallery Portikus. The public is invited to interact with, dip in, and drink purified water from the river. As in many of Raza’s works, human exchange is an integral part of this piece. Custodians, who Raza cast on site, wander with the visitor, explaining scientific facts, telling stories, and carrying out daily rituals, such as monitoring the water quality, analyzing its development, filtering, and remineralizing quantities of it. By bringing together the processual and the relational, Raza emphasizes in this piece the interdependence of humans and their environment.