Artwork copyright David Taylor. Photo courtesy of the artist.

Grand Coulee Dam Powerhouse/Kettle Falls, 2000

David Taylor
American (born 1965)

Location: Carmichael Middle School, Richland

About the Artwork

Grand Coulee Dam Powerhouse/Kettle Falls is a photo construction by artist David Taylor. It is part of Taylor's 'High Water' project. This project investigates how man and nature have shaped the landscape of the Inland Northwest. During the last ice age, several massive floods shaped the Columbia plateau and Columbia River Basin. The floods carved dry channels and exposed bedrock. In 1932, construction of the Grand Coulee Dam began. This flooding created Lake Roosevelt, which irrigates thousands of acres of farmland in Eastern Washington. To create this lake, the dam flooded immense areas surrounding the Columbia River. The floods submerged Kettle Falls, where the Colville Tribe traditionally fished. Taylor notes, "The channeled Scablands and the Columbia Basin Irrigation Project are the result of floods separated by 12,000 years, each very different in origin but both catastrophic and monumental." Taylor obtained the archival image of Kettle Falls with the permission and assistance of the University of Washington in Seattle. The image is part of the Manuscripts and Special Collections division of the Washington Allen Library.

This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with Richland School District.

About the Artist

David Taylor blurs the boundaries of documentary, portrait, and landscape photography to address complex historical and social issues. He earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree (1989) from Tufts University in Massachusetts and a Master of Fine Arts degree (1994) in visual design and photography from the University of Oregon. He has served as a professor of art at Oregon College of Arts and Crafts in Portland, Linfield College in McMinnville, Oregon, New Mexico State University, and the University of Arizona.