Be the Drop that Shapes the Wave
Unveiling of a Co-created Art Installation to Raise Awareness of Latin America’s Water Challenges
March 23, 2023
New York, USA
To coincide with the UN 2023 Water Conference, New York-based artist Inma Barrero presents Be The Drop That Shapes The Wave a work she has co-created with the participation of more than 100 children, youngsters, entrepreneurs, activists, government officials and not-for-profit leaders from some fifteen countries to raise awareness about the desperate need for access to safe water and sanitation in Latin America.
Inma Barrero has developed an object and installation-based practice around ceramics. Her pieces occupy architectural space with poetic sensibility, playing with light and the physical environment. Be the Drop that Shapes the Wave, is composed of thousands of ceramic beads, each representing a drop of water. The work evokes the power and constant volition of water in motion. “This piece allows everyone to connect with their own perceptions and understanding about water” explained Inma Barrero.
An alliance of five organizations commissioned the artwork Be the Drop that Shapes the Wave: FEMSA Foundation, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the One Drop Foundation, WAVIN, and the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI). Together they sought to demonstrate the transformative potential of social art to trigger innovative thinking, foster shared experiences, and create a space for mobilizing agents of change.
“It is beautiful and inspiring to witness how people from very diverse backgrounds have shared this artistic experience focused on water and its impact,” said Lorena Guillé-Laris, executive director of FEMSA Foundation. “I am convinced that when we use disruptive and innovative methods such as art, we can solve the water challenges that 150 million people face in Latin America.”
Be the Drop that Shapes the Wave echoes a global call and commitments from more than 100 agents of change to contribute to a water-secured world.
Over two months, participants from more than fifteen countries—including children, youngsters, members of the Stockholm Junior Water Prize Alumni, local and national officials, community leaders, NGOs, entrepreneurs, water funds and artists -- took part in a series of nine virtual and in-person workshops using One Drop Foundation’s Social Art for Behaviour ChangeTM, known as the SABC approach.
During these interactive sessions, participants reflected on their essential bond with water in playful, creative, and artistic ways. In New York, students from public schools and the LFNY, ages 9 to 15, joined the artist in her studio. As they pummeled and molded the clay into elements of the final art installation, they learned to express how water is present in their lives and could newly envisage their individual and collective power to shape the future.
The SABC approach integrates a systematic and evidence-based process. It takes account of various determinants of behavior such as context, psychosocial and technological factors as well as referencing art and culture. By doing so, it creates locally inspired social art programs that promote healthy practices related to Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH). The goal of One Drop Foundation’s Social Art for Behaviour Change™ approach is to empower communities to take ownership of projects over time, thereby ensuring their sustainability.
“It is interesting how art and water conservation can come together in projects such as this to reflect on the reality of water,” said Carlos Hurtado, Head of Sustainable Development Programs at FEMSA. “We need more artists as engaged as Inma Barrero to join these initiatives, because artistic expression stands as a powerful engine to foster the change we need.”
One hundred and sixty million people do not have access to safe water in Latin America. That means seven out of ten of its inhabitants live in direst scarcity, or, put another away, more than the entire populations of Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, and Peru combined. Those staggering numbers are the calculations of Lazos de Agua, a program that draws on the power of artistic expression to improve people’s livelihoods and that helps develop their access to water, sanitation and hygiene.
“All the problems the world is facing, whether poverty, lack of education, social injustice, economic development, climate change, gender inequality, lack of food or health, have one element in common: access to water,” wrote Guy Laliberté, founder of the One Drop Foundation, one of the organizations that coordinated Inma Barrero’s co-creation project.
For more information about this installation read more here.
Photo credit: Bill Jacobson Studios
About Inma Barrero: Inma Barrero is an artist with an object and installation-based practice. Barrero’s iconography and experimental research with ceramic is influenced by her Spanish upbringing, the Latin American continent and her experience living in Japan. Her latest body of work reflects her preoccupation with the fragility of life and a spiritual approach to body and mind.
About FEMSA Foundation: At Fundación FEMSA we are dedicated to cultivating prosperity for current and future generations. To those ends, we focus on four themes that we believe are levers for change. These include Early Childhood, Art and Culture, Circular Economy, and Water Security.
More information at: fundacionfemsa.org or visit our social media: FB, IG, TW (@FundacionFEMSA) and LI (/Fundación-FEMSA)
About IDB: The Inter-American Development Bank's mission is to improve lives. Founded in 1959, the IDB is one of the main sources of long-term financing for economic, social, and institutional development in Latin America and the Caribbean. The IDB also conducts cutting-edge research projects and offers policy advice, technical assistance, and training to public and private clients throughout the region. Access our virtual tour.
About One Drop Foundation: The One DropTM Foundation is an international philanthropic organization created by Cirque du Soleil and Lune Rouge founder Guy Laliberté with the vision of a better world, where all have access to living conditions that allow empowerment and development. Its mission is to ensure sustainable access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene for communities facing extreme barriers through innovative partnerships, creativity, and the power of art. Together with its partners, the One Drop Foundation deploys its unique Social Art for Behaviour ChangeTM approach designed to promote the adoption of healthy water, sanitation and hygiene-related behaviours and empower communities. For this to be possible, the One Drop Foundation creates novel fundraising initiatives supported by a visionary community of partners and donors. The One Drop Foundation is celebrating 15 years of turning water into action, with projects that will soon have improved the living conditions of more than 2.7 million people around the world. Visit The One Drop Foundation and follow our impact via Newsletter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.
About the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI): The Stockholm International Water Institute, SIWI, works globally to change how water is understood, valued, and managed. As advocates and advisors, we show how improved water governance is key to a fairer, more prosperous, and resilient future. SIWI is a not-for-profit institute with a wide range of expertise in water governance – from sanitation and water resources management to water diplomacy. We create knowledge, develop capacity, and offer policy advice to countries, communities, and companies. SIWI organizes the world’s leading water conference, World Water Week, and awards the prestigious Stockholm Water Prize. We also empower young people to solve water issues through the international competition Stockholm Junior Water Prize. Read more.
About Orbia Building & Infrastructure (Wavin) Orbia’s Building and Infrastructure business Wavin is an innovative solutions provider for the global building and infrastructure industry. Backed by more than 60 years of product development experience, Wavin is advancing life around the world by building healthy, sustainable environments for global citizens. Whether it’s to improve the distribution of clean drinking water, to make sanitation accessible for everyone, to create climate-resilient cities, or to design comfortable living spaces, Wavin collaborates with municipal leaders, engineers, contractors and installers to help future-proof communities, buildings and homes. Wavin has 12,000+ employees across approximately 65 production sites worldwide, serving over 80 countries through a global sales and distribution network.