LOST IN SIGHT
IN SEARCH OF THE FLINT RIVER'S HEADWATERS
IMAGES + INSTALLATION
On any given day, some 260,000 passengers fly in and out of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta, one of the busiest airport in the world. Beneath the tarmac, unknown to most people, flow the headwaters of one of the most scenic rivers in the southeast of the United States, the Flint. It is referred in travel magazines as a “sinuous beauty,” flowing through the hills of the Georgia Piedmont all the way to the Florida panhandle, 344 miles below.
Its headwaters start with a few urban streams in three communities just north of the airport, emerging from storm sewers and culverts - the legacy of railroad towns that have become a part of the sprawl of a metropolitan city.
They join together to flow under the airport through pipes for about a mile and a half, below the five runways and countless parking lots. From there, it meanders through more industrial zones, stone-extraction facilities, and along two major highways, to finally reach a swampy riparian area and a public access 15 miles south of its groundwater seepages.
Most days, it is an inconspicuous stream, winding its way through ditches, hidden along roadways or behind thick vegetation. But after heavy rains, the headwaters become a drainage canal carrying all the waters of the surrounding impervious surfaces. They swell and overflow bridges, releasing a pungent smell of raw sewage in the air.
The headwaters are not the river’s only area impacted by pollution, stormwater runoffs and erosion. All along its 344-mile course, the Flint has its share of issues. It is part of the ACF river basin, which is the subject of decades of litigation in the “water wars” between Alabama, Georgia and Florida. In 2016, the AFC basin ranked first on the list of America’s Most Endangered Rivers®, in view of its outdated water management.
To locate the water’s edge, I relied on old maps, archival materials and human knowledge, since the headwaters are either buried under pipes in the airport's restricted area, hidden along roadways or behind thick vegetation.
I paired some of my images in diptychs to reinforce the dichotomy between a river simultaneously spoiled and sadly forgotten, yet surprisingly beautiful, inviting and full of potential.
EXHIBIT
“Where the Rivers Meet,” an urban exploration along the rivers that flow in Atlanta and Marseille with photographer Geoffroy Matthieu. Presented by Villa Albertine and the Franco-German Cultural Center of Atlanta, as part of City/Cité - Towards Earthly Cities, the Atlanta Design Festival and France Atlanta. October 13-22, 2023