Museum highlights worldwide water source challenges
THE Iziko South African Museum will highlight the diversity and challenges of water sources worldwide, with its exhibition H2O Today on November 29.
The exhibition, organised by the Smithsonian Institution Travelling Exhibition Service (SITES), promotes conversation, creativity and innovation through art, science and technology.
Items on display include an immersive 3D artwork of Victoria Falls, anthropology objects that chronicle the evolution of the water canister from an ostrich egg used by the Khoisan to the plastic water bottles used today; a selection of iconic images that document Cape Town’s water crisis; specimens from Iziko’s collections that showcase the aquatic life of Table Mountain and the two oceans flanking it; and a time lapse of tidal waters that influence Cape Town’s rich marine biodiversity – presented in an African and local context.
Iziko Museums of South Africa chief executive Rooksana Omar said: “Water scarcity is not a uniquely Cape Town story – it is a shared global phenomenon. This exhibition, brought to South Africa in partnership with the US Consulate in Cape Town and the Smithsonian Institution, is an example of a multi-dimensional relationship enabling an inclusive conversation at this critical time.
“It demonstrates how museums, through exhibitions and programmes, can create awareness of relevant societal issues.”
H2O Today is part of the Smithsonian’s #ThinkWater Initiative to raise awareness of water as a critical resource for life.
Using immersive content, interactive activities, and digital media, this international exhibition – supplemented with Iziko curated African content and collection objects – brings a global conversation at a critical time within the Western Cape context, having recently experienced the worst water crisis in living memory.
H2O Today dives into what it means to live on a planet where 71% of the surface is covered in water, of which less than 3% is drinkable.
The exhibition highlights water’s criticality in daily life worldwide through water power, industry, agriculture and home use.
It explores the science of water from the hydrological cycle, weather and climate to its physical power as an architect and sculptor of landscape.
The exhibition showcases global examples and striking imagery augmented with audiovisual material that tells the story of Earth as the water planet, water as our home, ways that water shapes culture, rising tides and sea level rise, and innovative solutions to some of the planet’s greatest water challenges.
Unparalleled on the African continent, the Iziko South African Museum is the second oldest scientific institution in South Africa.
H2O Today will be on show daily from 9am until 5pm at the Iziko South African Museum.
Museums, through exhibitions, can create awareness of relevant societal issues