Protecting Our Shared Waters

Protecting Our Shared Waters. . , Untroubled Waters is an installation designed to honor the first international treaty between the United States and Canada to govern, protect and sustain precious boundary waters. It is positioned in Centennial Circle – established in 2009 to celebrate the two nations’ stewardship of vital shared waterways, established through this treaty, that has endured for over a century., At the turn of the 20th century, disputes over the availability, distribution, uses and quality of the waterways that flow along or cross the United States/Canada border resulted in the Boundary Waters Treaty. Signed on January 11, 1909, the treaty established the International Joint Commission (IJC), the first permanent American-Canadian body, charged with settling and preventing disputes over boundary disputes over boundary waters. The Treaty provides the general principles for the United States and Canada to follow in using the lakes, rivers and connecting waterways they share., Locally, the IJC governs the most critical issues affecting the Great Lakes watershed and regional resources including Lake Erie, Lake Ontario and the Niagara River. Although the International Joint Commission’s jurisdiction includes navigation, commerce, irrigation and pollution control, its most important function at Niagara Falls is the regulation of water diversion for power production. The Boundary Waters Treaty and the IJC ensure that the waters of the Niagara River will always nourish iconic Niagara Falls., Artwork commissioned by the City of Niagara Falls as part of the Niagara River Greenway., About the Artist and Artwork , Jeff Laramore is an Indianapolis- based artist whose public art installations focus on three-dimensional, site-specific executions that strive to bring people together, while capturing and embodying a spirit of place., According to Laramore, Untroubled Waters portrays “a ribbon of water surrounded and protected by two great nations. One may see the ‘flags’ representing the nations as analogous to hands allowing a stream of water to flow freely between them, yet shielding it from harm. Others may see the flags as protective screens, or some form of fortification guarding their valuable resource. All, a representation of the nations’ understanding and respect for how vital, powerful, and precious our waterways are.”, Untroubled Waters is 33 feet tall by 30 feet at its widest point. The sculpture is constructed of 6.5 tons of aluminum and is anchored in 132 tons of concrete with 5 tons of reinforced steel. Its three massive wings were transported over 500 miles to Niagara Falls. Laramore was chosen for this commission through a competitive public process led by the Public Art Initiative at the Albright Knox Art Gallery.