Watercourse is a large-scale multi-screen sculptural projection which depicts a section of a river endlessly looping back into itself. As debris flows down the river, it continually loops around and around, locked in a constant state of motion. Watercourse recontextualizes a free flowing, summertime river scene into a frozen Minnesota winter site. In tandem with the projections, multichannel sound creates spatialized acoustic environment, which tracks and flows with the water and debris. The combination of the river loop, site specificity, and sound treatment create a displacement, where one environment is isolated and simulated within another. Watercourse creates an immersive paradoxical scenario that explores human perception, simulation, time and scale shifts, preservation, and our relationship to the natural environment.
Ben Moren is a Minneapolis based media artist working at the intersection of filmmaking, performance, and creative coding. His projects investigate the disappearing separation between the digital and natural worlds.
Watercourse is part of Illuminate South Loop, a three-day event at Bloomington Central Park (8100 33rd Avenue South) in Bloomington’s South Loop District from February 1 – 3, 2018. This creative placemaking initiative focuses on leveraging the power of the arts, culture and creativity to engage the community.