From the end of July to the middle of August 1995, in the area of Binjiang Park of Jinjiang Hotel in Funan River in the center of Chengdu, the U.S. “water protector” association and Chengdu environmental protection publicity and education center jointly sponsored an artistic creation activity with the theme of “water protector“. More than 10 artists from the United States and domestic regions were invited to the bank of Funan River for a series of performance art and installation art creation that lasted more than half a month. Ms. Betsy Damon, the initiator, event planner and artist of the American “water protector” association, also proposed the idea of establishing the world’s first urban ecological environment park with the theme of “water protection” by Funan River in Chengdu, that is, the Living Water Garden. In 1996, the Chengdu municipal government adopted the creative scheme and included it in the Funan River construction project. The construction was completed in 1999.
“Living Water park” has become a landmark for public environmental art landscape with great international reputation in Chengdu. For a long time, there has been an endless stream of visits from citizens to scholars, experts and government leaders at home and abroad. In 1998, it won the highest award of the 12th International “Excellent Waterfront Award” and the environmental regional design award jointly established by the International Environmental Design Research Association and the American journal Regional. It was named Sichuan Environmental Protection Education Base in April 2004 and Chengdu Environmental Protection Education Base in October of the same year. In 2010, “series of sculptures of Living Water Garden” won the nomination award of New China Urban Sculpture Construction Achievement Exhibition.
Extracted from Narration of Water Protector—Chengdu Local Things 1994 & 1995, By Zhang Yinchuan
1995 年 7 月底至 8 月中旬，在成都市中心府南河锦江宾馆宾江公园一带，美国“水的保护者”协会和成都市环境保护宣传教育中心联合主办的一场以“水的保护者”为主题的艺术创作活动，美国和国内各地区的 10 多位艺术家应邀来到府南河河畔，进行了持续半过多月的系列行为艺术和装置艺术创作。美国“水的保护者”协会发起人，活动策划人，艺术家贝特西 • 达蒙女士还进一步提出创意，在成都府南河畔建立世界上第一个以“水的保护”为主题的城市生态环境公园即：活水公园，1996 年成都市政府采纳创意方案，列入府南河建设项目，1999 年实施建设完成。
“活水公园”是成都市一座具有国际声誉标志性的公共环境艺术景观，长期以来，从市民到国内外的学者专家及政府领 导人参观考察络绎不绝，1998 年荣获得第十二届国际“优秀水岸奖”最高奖，国际环境设计研究会和美国“地域”杂 志联合设立的环境地域设计奖，2004 年 4 月被命名为四川省环保教育基地，同年 10 月被命名为成都市环保教育基地。 2010 年“活水公园系列组雕”荣获新中国城市雕塑建设成就展提名奖。
摘自《“水的保护者”叙事——1994·1995 成都本土生态二三事》，文｜张颖川
