Dirty Water Initiative, 2005

The US art collective SIMPARCH began their investigative process by working with one of Tijuana’s informal communities in collaboration with the Fundación Esperanza. They became especially interested in the theme of water, in particular the idea of purifying water using solar-based water distillation. The project, entitled Dirty Water Initiative, had two phases: the first stage was to construct and install a small purification plant as a “public fountain” sited in the pedestrian walkway from San Ysidro to Tijuana at the US-Mexico port of entry; the second stage involved the donation of the distillation facility to an informal community in Tijuana. The deployment of these solar distillers, sealed in glass, more than an aesthetic effect at the urban scale, seeks to stimulate reflection about the problem of water, and the importance of researching ecological solutions that could achieve a direct impact at the community level within poor, informal settlements.

Curators: Osvaldo Sánchez and Tania Ragasol
Venues: San Ysidro and Tijuana