Exhibition: With Water

With Water is a group exhi­bi­tion invit­ing artists from diverse dis­ci­plines to explore the pro­found and mul­ti­fac­eted sig­nif­i­cance of water. Curat­ed by Mary Mat­ting­ly and Kim Dar­ling, the exhi­bi­tion opens on May 18 from 2 – 5PM at the Swale House on Gov­er­nors Island and remains on view through June 15.

Water — essen­tial to life, yet threat­ened and politi­cized — is exam­ined here not just as a nat­ur­al resource, but as a cul­tur­al, eco­log­i­cal, polit­i­cal, and spir­i­tu­al force. Through a wide array of media and per­spec­tives, With Water sparks dia­logue about our col­lec­tive and indi­vid­ual rela­tion­ships with this life-sus­tain­ing ele­ment. The exhi­bi­tion reflects on water as a source of resilience, as a site of cri­sis, and as a pow­er­ful sym­bol across human and non-human communities.

Fea­tured artists include:

Fred Fleish­er, Mauri­cio Her­rero, Feli­cia Gail, Zoe Reid, Jes­si­ca Segall, Sarah Olson, William Downs, Mark Andrew, J Bar­nett, Teal Gard­ner, Alex Jochim, Rebec­ca Schultz, Rober­ta Trentin, Derek Court­ney, and Sue Knight

Each artist brings a unique lens to the con­ver­sa­tion — through instal­la­tions, pho­tog­ra­phy, sculp­ture, paint­ing, and inter­dis­ci­pli­nary prac­tices — cre­at­ing an immer­sive expe­ri­ence that high­lights both the fragili­ty and strength of water-con­nect­ed sys­tems and stories.

Set in Swale House, a pub­lic plat­form for eco­log­i­cal art and edu­ca­tion, With Water offers view­ers a space for reflec­tion and action.

Swale is one of the 2025 Gov­er­nors Island Arts Orga­ni­za­tions in Res­i­dence.