By a Thread: Great Salt Lake

By a Thread celebrates the species of the Great Salt Lake's vibrant ecosystem. After consulting with scientists from the Great Salt Lake Institute and the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, Bornhoft constructed a list of species to include that are endemic to or dependent on the lake. Bornhoft illustrated each of the species and printed them on unhemmed and transparent fabric. Their ghostly presence shows their interconnected dependence. The shadow of the one before allows the next to be seen. The unhemmed fabric leaves them vulnerable to unraveling. The illustrations are freely available as an open resource to help assist educators, researchers, and activists.

Viewers are invited to gently sift through and touch the banners. An attached guide can assist in identifying species throughout the installation. The photographs referenced for the illustrations are sourced from the Creative Commons, often taken by local citizen scientists. The guide credits the source image photographers with gratitude. The Great Salt Lake is in the unceded territory of the Ute, Paiute, Goshute, and Shoshone tribes—who have sustainably lived with the lake for thousands of years. The lake's ecosytem is in threat of collapse due to diverted water from the rivers that feed it and the impacts of climate change. An approach involving citizen scientists, experts, and art intentionally brings attention to how everyone’s contributions are needed to restore and sustain our inland sea.

Guide:

The illustrated images are available for use under the Creative Commons License CC By-NC 4.0

The complete collection in full-resolution can be viewed and downloaded.

Download Illustrations

This project is generously supported by the Wake the Great Salt Lake Grant. Wake the Great Salt Lake is a project of the Salt Lake City Arts Council and Mayor’s Office supported by the Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge. More info at wakegsl.org.

By a Thread & Poetry Reading, November 30th, Marmalade Library

At the opening reception Great Salt Lake poetry was read by Rachel White, Laura Stott, Nan Seymour, Mustafa Cingoz, Scott Moore, Chloe Skidmore, and Jasmine Hennigs-Cornell. Several of the works read come from the recently published book Irreplaceable: A Collective Praise Poem for Great Salt Lake.

Endangered Species Act: San Francisco Bay Area

By a Thread 2023 digital print on voile fabric, wood, 3D printed hardware

By a Thread is a celebration of the Endangered Species Act, the most effective environmental legislation for the past 50 years. Though few animals have been delisted, most species avoided extinction because of the legal protection. This collection of drawn plants and animals depicts every species ever federally listed as endangered under the ESA that resides or resided within a 30-mile radius of my studio on the unceded territory of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe.

Sample of drawings before printing on voile

Viewers are invited to gently sift through and touch the banners. The accompanying guide can assist in identifying species throughout the installation. The photographs referenced for the illustrations are sourced from the Creative Commons and often taken by citizen scientists. This guide credits the source image photographers with gratitude. The ESA has a history of embracing citizen science by allowing anyone to petition to list a species to the Fish and Wildlife Service. The illustrations were returned to the Creative Commons to increase accessibility and aid further study.

Once drawn, I print these illustrations on transparent fabric. Their ghostly presence shows their interconnected dependence. The shadow of the one before allows the next to be seen. Their unhemmed fabric leaves them vulnerable to unraveling.

Exhibition Guide: