Rodney Taylor: The Burden of Water
Schedule
Fri Nov 07 2025 at 05:00 pm to 09:00 pm
UTC-05:00Location
106 College Street, Buffalo, NY, United States, New York 14201 | Buffalo, NY
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Rivalry Projects is thrilled to present The Burden of Water, an exhibition by Rodney Taylor (1966 - 2019). Creating somber, yet hopeful paintings on canvas and paper, Taylor utilized materials such as acrylic, flashe, pastel, plasticine, and earth clay to channel the frantic energy of our environment and highlight the vulnerabilities of a changing world. Throughout his practice, Taylor explored a wide range of topics including environmental destabilization, the failings of our government, economic disparities, and the tenuous nature of his own health. The exhibition includes various series that depict colorful forests of birch trees, in various states of growth and decay; views of the Capitol building under duress - flooded, crumbling, or on fire; large-scale black and white gridded matrices that appear like electrical grids or aerial views of city blocks - an ode to the micro and macrocosms of a humming community; and ghost-like structures of homes and domestic interiors that were inspired by the economic disparities of neighborhoods in Buffalo, New York.
The Burden of Water features series dating from 2005 to 2019, alongside a selection of sketchbooks, writing, and other ephemera. The exhibition intentionally demonstrates the breadth of Taylor’s work while highlighting his ability to approach these topics with a raw yet hopeful sensitivity. He felt deeply and did not stray away from telling difficult truths. Instead he forcefully addressed deficiencies in the systems that surrounded him, with the hope to chart a productive path forward. In 2025, Taylor’s work feels entirely prophetic. He was fascinated by the eventual collapse of our environment, our government, our resources - problems that have only become more urgent in the years since his death.
The Burden of Water will be on view from November 7 - December 19, 2025, and is Taylor’s first posthumous presentation. The exhibition was organized in collaboration with Taylor’s wife, Annette Daniels Taylor, and their four children Mingus, Bebe, Haven, and Winter Sky.
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Where is it happening?
106 College Street, Buffalo, NY, United States, New York 14201Event Location & Nearby Stays:
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