It is believed that the water flowing through the Ovens River is the same water that has always been on Earth, arriving four and a half billion years ago as the solar system formed. Therefore, the water of the Ovens has moved through the capillaries of plants, nurtured new life in wombs, leisurely advanced through underground aquifers and lapped against tall ships, canoes and bulk carriers. Water records in its molecular architecture the pasts we may not be able to see or that have been actively erased. Therefore, to think with water – to think with the Ovens River – is to remember.

This project from Clare McCracken and Heather Hesterman explores the environmental history and future challenges of the Ovens River and its watershed through archival images from the State Library, narrative non-fiction writing, participatory arts practice and documentation of performative fieldwork.

Launch: Thursday 7 August, 5.30pm to 7pm