Alexandria Presents Site See: Water Break by Nekisha Durrett

D.C.-based mixed media artist Nekisha Durrett brings history forward through modern visual language in artwork shown across the country.

Her installation Break Water is on display in Waterfront Park from late March to November 2025. The sculpture draws inspiration from Alexandria’s waterfront being a place where natural forces and human activity intersect, often with profound consequences.

The sculpture’s centerpiece, crafted from blackened wood, evokes the sidewheel of the steamboat River Queen, a vessel symbolizing Black ownership and opportunity from 1898 until its mysterious destruction by fire in 1911, shortly after its purchase by Lew Jefferson, a Black entrepreneur. Encircled by black sandbags, the piece honors the resilience and strength of Black communities, referencing both protection and endurance during crises. Beneath the sculpture, a ground mural of tangled, taut ropes—called “Life Lines”—appears to tether the artwork to the park’s architectural elements, anchoring it against a symbolic undercurrent.

“The word ‘break’ is central to the artwork and conjures multiple layers of meaning,” said Durrett. “In jazz, the ‘break’ is a moment of improvisation, a rupture in the music where new possibilities emerge. It is in this spirit that Break Water seeks to reclaim and reinterpret the break as both a physical and metaphorical space of resistance, memory and transformation.”

This temporary art installation will be open to view by the public until November 2025, so don't miss your chance to see the site before it's gone!

Learn more about Nekisha Durrette.

Info: The art installation is open to the public and the music and art activities are activated.

Info: Remarks from Alexandria Office of the Arts, and the Artist Nakisha Durrett

Host or Publisher City of Alexandria Office of the Arts