Water Works — Eco-Social Design

Water is a central concern in the ecological and social issues that we are faced with, and technical solutions do not suffice. We need a radically diverse approach that stages and cultivates relations. Without promising grandiose schemes to save the environment, ecosocial design fosters curiosity about the ways in which people draw on their experience and shared commitment to landscapes and ecologies.

Through a collection of essays and case studies, Water Works shows over sixty careful responses to flooding, draught, pollution, extraction and other issues around freshwater. Divided into seven themes: Purity, Wild, Scale, Representation, Violence, Infrastructure and Commerce, Water Works allows us to learn from places and makers that build on the intricate relationships between people and other life forms, materials and (infra)structures.

Critically blending knowledge derived from craft, art, science and ecology, these works ask: what are sensible ways to embrace and connect with water? Through wading, floating, testing and tasting, how can we generate more desirable ecosocial relations? In facing large-scale engineering, climate change, privatization and other forms of water violence, these works are an invitation to design together with water as a site and medium for ecosocial renewal.