The UWM Union Art Gallery presents a new exhibition entitled “Working for the Water, Working for Each Other: Work by Melanie Ariens.” Melanie Ariens (BFA 1992, Art: Painting, Drawing and Printmaking) is a multi-media artist and water activist.
Ariens’ work focuses on the Great Lakes and freshwater issues. She uses art as a tool to create awareness and capture peoples’ hearts around water issues. Often, she will use simple metaphors to frame how we perceive the state of the lakes. She creates water shrines and fetish pieces, serving to inspire stewardship for our shared waters, gently urging us all to celebrate and care for them as we are the stewards of one of the World’s greatest freshwater resources.
Because of her belief that our dependence on clean, safe water unites us, and that everyone needs access to it to thrive, she works as the Creative Arts Manager for Milwaukee Water Commons. MWC is a social and environmental justice organization that uses the arts as a way to capture hearts around water issues, seeking fresh ways to connect and create community. They work to ensure that communities that are most affected by climate change and aging infrastructure are prioritized, have a say and benefit from work done in the community.
In addition to the work presented here, Melanie has worked on many public art projects for the Urban Ecology Center, the City of Milwaukee, Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage district and the Watermarks project.
“Working for the Water, Working for Each Other” will be on view through September 27, 2024.
Two films about the Great Lakes will be screened in the UWM Union Cinema, on the 2nd level of the UWM Student Union, in conjunction with the exhibition. Both films are free and open to the public.
On Wednesday, September 18 at 6 p.m., the Union Cinema will screen “Bad River,” a film which chronicles the Wisconsin-based Bad River band and their ongoing fight for sovereignty and the protection of Lake Superior from an aging 70-year-old pipeline. The film is cosponsored by Sociocultural Programming and the Electa Quinny Institute for American Indian Education at UWM. It will be followed by a discussion with Melanie Ariens and other water activists.
On Wednesday, October 9 at 6 p.m., the Union Cinema will show “The Worth of Water: A Great Lakes Story,” a feature-length documentary that follows the co-creators of Walk to Sustain Our Great Lakes, Julia Robson and Alyssa Armbruster, as they embark on their 343-mile walk from the shores of Lake Michigan in Milwaukee to Lake Superior in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The film is cosponsored by the Conservation Club at UWM and will be followed by a post-film discussion.
About the Union Art Gallery | The Union Art Gallery, located within the Student Union at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2200 E Kenwood Blvd, Milwaukee, WI 53211, seeks to bring outstanding contemporary art to the UWM campus community, reflect the diversity of the university and greater Milwaukee communities, connect the university and the public through relevant art and cultural programs, and support student, emerging, and established artists by providing opportunities for the creation and exhibition of cutting-edge visual art. The gallery is open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday from 12-5 and from 12-7 on Thursdays. For more information, visit the Union Art Gallery webpage.