We are Water MN

Minnesota is known as the Land of 10,000 Lakes – water shapes the landscapes, communities, and way of life. Almost everywhere you look, there is water.
The Minnesota Humanities Center is part of a coalition that created a traveling exhibit called We are Water MN. The exhibit considers water issues across the state through personal stories, history, and science. It strengthens visitor’s relationships with water, and increases participation in local water stewardship activities. The exhibit is currently on view in downtown Minneapolis at 809 Nicollet Mall, where it will stay through Aug. 11.
The exhibit, sponsored by the Minneapolis Downtown Council, is in a former Panera Bead Company location that went belly-up during the pandemic. The space is close enough to the Mississippi River to foster a watershed connection. Known as (among other names) “The Backbone of America,” the Mississippi River is just a few blocks away.

Weaving Water Workshop
On Saturday, June 21, a free indigo and weaving workshop was offered as part of the exhibit’s opening weekend. Weaving Water is an ongoing public art project created by Sarah Nassif, artist in residence at Mississippi Watershed Management Organization. She showed participants how to apply indigo dye to yarn and cloth through a series of steps: they folded and bound their fiber bundles, soaked them in water from the Mississippi River, dipped them in indigo dye vats, and unfolded them to reveal unexpected patterns.
Once dried, the freshly dyed pieces of yarn and cloth were transformed again as participants wove them together on a floor loom. Individual patterns were obscured, as the fibers become part of something new. Nassif said, “The ancient arts of dyeing and weaving connect us directly to the natural world and to our shared creativity. Each person follows the same steps, but ends up with different results.”
The Weaving Water project started in 2018, when Nassif received an Artist’s Initiative Grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, and a second grant two years later to further the project. She said, “I started doing this work first in the art sphere. During COVID, I started to think it would be valuable for community building with people coming out of lock-down. Raising awareness about water raises awareness about the vital connections we have to each other.”

A timely practice
Nassif continued, “My workshops involve problem solving with your hands. We’re making cloth together – new cloth from old. We’re thinking creatively together. Shared handwork not only builds community, but also is proven to combat depression and anxiety.”
“While the scary stories in the news are real, they aren’t the only stories. The flip side is that there is an incredible well of creativity and beauty in the world. If we remain in the beaten-down mode, it’s very hard to solve complex problems. We do still have agency over our lives. We have things to learn from each other, and to teach each other.”

Exhibit information
The Minnesota Humanities Center partnered with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, Minnesota Historical Society, Board of Water and Soil Resources, University of Minnesota Extension, and Minnesota Departments of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources to make We are Water MN possible.
View this free exhibit on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday from 11 a.m.–5 p.m.; Wednesday from 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.; and on July 26 and Aug. 9-10. Email minneapolisdid@gmail.com with questions, or visit the exhibit website at https://www.mplsdowntown.com/we-are-water.
The floor loom, and the chance to try your hand at weaving indigo-dyed fibers, is available any time the exhibit is open.