Water Ways: El Dorado Irrigation Districts Centennial

In partnership with El Dorado Irrigation District and in celebration of that agency’s 100-year anniversary, Switchboard
Gallery is hosting a visual exploration of the point at which culture and infrastructure meet. The exhibition, which runs
from August 29 – October 5, features photographs dating back to the early 20th century, as communities continued to
shift following the California Gold Rush, through to the present day.

Many of the photographs on exhibition are black and white, exquisitely composed by unknown photographers, and sit squarely in a poignant moment in the history of photography. During the first half of the 20th century, photographers such as Lewis Hine and Margaret Bourke-White documented the changing industrial landscape of the United States. Just as in their celebrated photographs, the images included in “Water Ways” expose the beauty in the mechanical, and the engaging contrast between industrial and organic forms.

An engaging talk on the History of EID will took place on Thursday, September 11 from 6:00-8:00 PM.