Pope.L, a Chicago-based artist who has been making public interventionist art for over twenty years, worked with Detroit artist-run gallery What Pipeline to galvanize interest in the people of Flint and their struggle for clean water access.

Flint Water Project (2017) was an art installation, a performance and an intervention that called attention to the water crisis in Flint by bottling contaminated Flint tap water and selling it as an edition at What Pipeline. During the exhibition the art installation served as a store, a bottling demo, and an informal information center providing folks with details about Flint’s crisis and serious water issues happening in Detroit, the Midwest and beyond.

Flint Water launched on September 7, 2017 with a block party at What Pipeline featuring live water bottling, raffle prizes, a piñata, tacos, special deals on Flint Water and more.

The artwork was conceived by Pope.L as “one Midwest city helping another struck by similar blight.” Proceeds from the sales of the bottled water were donated to the United Way of Genessee County who assist homegrown organizations in Flint to alleviate the crisis and Hydrate Detroit, a volunteer-lead non-profit organization combating water shutoffs and advocating for affordable water in Detroit.

Between September 2017 and January 2018, Flint Water Project raised over $30,000.

Flint Water Project was made possibly by support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation as part of the Knight Arts Challenge, Midtown Detroit, Inc., Mitchell-Innes & Nash, New York and Susanne Vielmetter Los Angeles Projects.

Learn more about Flint Water and Pope.L in T Magazine.