It isn’t exactly pioneer work to travel beneath Hartford. Graffiti and an illegally dumped car in the underground Park/Hog River serve as evidence of previous visits, and not surprising, given how easy it is to access the river if one knows where to look. A pair of fishing waders enables a bit of access for the curious; a simple raft can get someone from the Pope Park area to the Connecticut River.
Documenting the trip is not groundbreaking either. It has been done on various websites, on public radio, and in storytelling.
But Joe McCarthy and Peter Albano may be the first to create artistic maps of their experience.
If their names sound familiar, it may be due to their successful Hog River Revival Kickstarter project which ended in May.
Now, you can view the art produced as a result of their eighteen months of exploration.
The mixed media exhibit at the ArtWalk Gallery showcases the canoe and romanticized photographs, prints, and paintings of the journeys.
There is a super-meta aspect to this exhibit: The Hartford Public Library forms a tunnel over the Whitehead Highway which is built over the Park River Conduit.
The Hog River Revival exhibit will be on display in the ArtWalk Gallery at the Hartford Public Library through January 20, 2013.
Jim C
I love when the super-meta thing happens. I also believe that one of the side tunnels leads to HogRiverWarts. And you can access the river from The Mark Twain House by flushing yourself down the toilet.
Kerri Provost
I don’t remember that part of the tour.
Jim Condren
They got the idea from “train spotting ” , the movie with ewan mcgregor, if memory serves.