February of 1992, architect Steve Borbas and I were invited by the New Mexico School for the Deaf, funded in part by the New Mexico Arts Division, to create a fountain centrally located on the campus. Collaboratively designed and built with the help of students, faculty and staff of the school, this fountain would also commemorate “Artsign”, an annual gathering of young deaf visual and performing artists from five states.

Riverwall stretches over 75 feet (25 meters) and represents the fruit of this collective effort. One side of the work features a poem (stamped in clay tiles) “Make the Earth Bright, and Thanks”, written by Meridel LeSueur, who granted us permission to use it. On the other side of the meandering wall, a continuous curtain of tiles presents the rhythmic and tactile patterns of moving water, emphasizing the crest and flow of a river. A steel channel running along the curving top of the wall spills water into a pool, recycling it back to the top.

At the April 23, 1992 dedication, hearing and non-hearing people from Louisiana, Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico brought water from all over the world – waters from such sources as the Pacific, the Atlantic, the Gulf of Mexico, the Mississippi, Ganges, Amazon, etc. to add to the fountain, celebrating unity among all people.

copyright  ©2008 Sam Tubiolo