Fill up the buckets! We can't have no water

Goal 6: Clean water and sanitation

For the lino printmaking project, I looked at the 6th Social Development Goal which is clean water and sanitation. I explored ideas around water conservation in South Africa as well as how having access to clean and running water is a privilege in South Africa because many poor communities around the country do not have running water and are forced to use water sources that can be at high risk of being unsanitary and unsafe for use.

I specifically based my work on an event a few weeks past where there was no water for a couple of days in my residence. The difficulties that we in the res experienced such as not being able to flush the toilet, wash up or drink reflects our privilege because all of us have access to clean running water and do not live lives without it. After the water came back there was another threat about a week later that the water would be switched off again. As a result, there was a frantic rush in my residence to full every bucket, bottle, and vessel with water to prevent the discomfort from the last experience. I chose to take the imagery of everything filled with water to showcase the idea around water consumption in my print.

The large amount of water being saved and the general panic around the idea of no water in res reflects the overall panic a population experiences when the reality of little to no water available becomes a reality. It shows how water conservation as well as access to clean water to vital.