It’s been a little over a month since DamNation made its world premiere at the SXSW film festival in Austin, Texas. DamNation, a documentary film, explores the sea change in our national attitude from pride in big dams as engineering wonders to the growing awareness that our future is bound to the life and health of our rivers The film features historic moving images from the Katie Lee Collection housed in Special Collections and Archives.
Katie Lee, bathing in a water hole, Glen Canyon. Image courtesy of Tad Nichols Collection NAU.PH.99.3.1.15.22
For the few who may not know, Katie is a musician, entertainer, environmentalist activist, river runner, writer, and a longtime Southwest desert rat. Katie first floated into the red-rock labyrinth of Glen Canyon (now Lake Powell) nearly 60 years ago. Since her first visit to Glen Canyon, it has remained a very dear and special place for Katie. Tragically, the grandeur and beauty of this riparian canyon was drowned in the name of “progress.” To learn more about Katie Lee and her collection at Cline Library, please check out “Naked Truth: The Katie Lee Exhibit”. To further explore the beauty and controversy surrounding Glen Canyon, Special Collections and Archives has a wonderful resource page that highlights additional collections, images, reports, and tribal issues, Click here