Calendar of Rain
"What’s it going to feel like for you to experience this piece of science? That’s this moment of science I really love, because people were like, 'Wow, look how the world works. Check it out.'"—Stacy Levy
Calendar of Rain
"You have to sort of put it together yourself. And my job is to make it so apparent that you’ll put it together pretty much the right way, though you may draw different conclusions. But you won’t walk away going, 'What was that about?'"—Stacy Levy
 
Calendar of Rain

"What’s it going to feel like for you to experience this piece of science? That’s this moment of science I really love, because people were like, 'Wow, look how the world works. Check it out.'"—Stacy Levy

By Stacy Levy

Calendar of Rain was an ongoing visual record of precipitation at the Chemical Heritage Foundation. Between June 2013 and June 2014 a funnel outside the building collected water in a bottle labeled with the date. Every 24 hours the bottle was capped and a new bottle was placed under the funnel. The collection of these bottles, as seen in the Hach Gallery, created a bar graph of precipitation for the year. At the end of the exhibition, bottles were given to visitors as mementos of the yearlong event.


Tracking Rain with Art

Can art be a form of experimentation that explains daily phenomena? Stacy Levy explores these questions in her work Calendar of Rain.


Stacy Levy is a sculptor whose work translates and visualizes the often unseen processes and patterns of the natural world through science and art. Levy’s site-specific work is often done in partnership with scientists, engineers, and architects. In an interview with our staff Levy spoke about Calendar of Rain, the ways observing common items around us can help elucidate important facts about our environment, and how we might better understand the concept of urban nature.

More information about Stacy Levy, who is based in rural Pennsylvania, can be found at stacylevy.com.

View all clips from our interview with Stacy Levy.


Art in Action

Art is more than something pretty to look at, says Stacy Levy.