Anna Rotty
On View
The Window box at vladem contemporary
Light/water enlarger, river water, cottonwood leaves, dried mud, pigment print photographs from scanned silver gelatin photograms
Anna Rotty is an artist and teacher whose photographic observations and material studies explore light, water, and infrastructure. The resulting constructed landscapes are informed by Rotty’s understanding of orientation and place, using light to examine the intangible and emotional aspects of the natural world.
Synthesizing the act of the sun rising over the river and the process of UV wastewater treatment, Shallows Unfolding uses a spotlight to project through a sealed box of water collected from the Rio Grande. Representations of flow, evaporation, condensation, and human intervention are evidenced in large-scale photographic prints that overtake the space. Collected materials from the dried riverbed intersect with printed matter, altered by the steady projection of ripples from the box above, which amplify and become more visible as the sun sets. The resulting work places the river as a fluid being, and brings the complicated histories of power, agency, and control over water to the fore.
This work owes deep gratitude to the Tewa people who have been caring for and communing with the land and water represented in this work since time immemorial. You can see more of Rotty’s work on her website: www.annarotty.com