Hat / Roof    1994

Hat for Bottled Water 1994

Hat/Roof,  Hat for Bottled Water, Umbrella Rain Catcher,   Bucket House  
The following works were the result of a long investigation of our need to gather and contain water as well as to be protected from rain. I have a summerhouse near the beach on Long Island and decided to build a new outdoor shower house. In preparation I spent a year experimenting with ways to accumulate rainwater and investigated ways to direct it away from the house. How can rain be brought inside to feed indoor showers and sinks? I created works that directed rainwater to specific trees and controlled the flow of rain to pools and gardens. I built sinks that collect rainwater and a conical cistern that connects to a garden hose. An inverted umbrella became a portable rain catcher. I transformed 12 standard buckets and developed new ways to carry them. Others in this series included: two Hat/Roof pieces that collect water and transfer it to either bottles strapped to a belt or to a bucket worn on a person’s back. An aqueduct carried rain from outside and transported it to a bucket inside the building.