Sweetwater Wetlands Journal

Over the course of several months, I kept an annotated sketchbook to document my visits to a manmade wetland/water treatment facility in the desert. I was shocked upon my first visit to find such a strangely lush wetland oasis not only in Tucson, but near the interstate. After a few walks between and around the ponds and settling basins, the the initial location-shock wore off. I was soon crawling around among the plant life, oversized from the high concentrations of fertilizers in the water, and honing in on the surplus of arthropods moving about. Had Sweetwater not been a haven for bats and a way station for migratory birds, the bugs probably would have this place taken over entirely.

Handmade journal (Strathmore 400 and Duralar drafting film), ballpoint pen, graphite. 4.25x6". 2010–2011.

Sweetwater Wetlands Journal was published in GROUND|WATER: The Art, Design and Science of a Dry River. Confluencenter for Creative Inquiry, 2012.

Buy your copy here.