These two sculptures were the winners of a public art call by Red Deer Alberta to create fire hydrant drinking fountains to highlight the importance of providing access to drinkable water for all. This meaningful project speaks to the importance of using refillable water bottles and the movement away from bottled water and single-use containers. The larger sculpture was designed as a semi-permanent artwork fountain to be installed in a public square. The smaller sculpture is a portable hydrant-fountain to be used at special events.
The design consists of whimsical grasses with embedded water pools. Community is at the heart of this project. While engaging around the basic human need of water, a natural connection is made with the grasses – also dependent on water while at the same time providing an ecological habitat for other living elements to safely access that water. Just as the fauna gather to drink either separately or communally, the Red Deer visitors will feel the aesthetic invitation to experience this key element as an integral part of the larger ecosystem – a creative reminder that people and nature are interconnected.
With fertile grasslands predominating the uncultivated native vegetation of the Red Deer region, this choice of sculptural imagery provides another point of conversation in the merging of urban and rural domains. Paying tribute to the natural world through art that is non-threatening and approachable, along with a fresh drink of water, encourages the citizens to feel proud in sharing the city’s vision to provide easy and playful public access to potable water with the corresponding encouragement to reduce single-use containers.
