I’m a fan of water towers of all types, all shapes and sizes and colors and uses. I loved living in Brooklyn and walking around and seeing some of my favorite rooftop towers everyday. When I moved to Sudbury I knew there wouldn’t be the classic New York style water tanks, but instead I set my sights on the two water towers in downtown Sudbury that served the city for over 40 years. Each tower sits on top of the highest elevated points downtown about a mile apart from each other.

Pine Street Water Tower, Sudbury, Ontario

Both towers are painted with Sudbury’s name and make for great welcome signs to the city. They also have great shapes and long legs, but they’ve both suffered from neglect and infrequent restoration. Because of that, both towers were slated for demolition as early as this spring.

I knew that if the towers were destroyed I’d be pretty disappointed and it would be a real shame, as the towers should be considered heritage structures here. So I decided to collect artwork from local artists and water tower lovers alike depicting the towers in all their glory. For a couple of months I collected digital images and posted them on a website, and then put together an official call for submissions that culminated in an art show exhibiting over 100 paintings, photographs and illustrations of the towers from over 75 artists.

Here are some photos of the event that local photographer, Conte, took during the opening (first 5 photos) and some photos that Chantal took (last 5 photos). It was a great show with a great turnout and delicious cheese.

If you live in Sudbury and want to visit the exhibit you have until April 28th to view the work. The show is up at the Fromagerie Elgin in downtown Sudbury.  The show comes down on April 29th.