On a bank of the Niagara River, six pools of water, encircled by concrete, are arranged in the pattern of the constellation Hydra. Their mirror-like quality reflects the sky, the light, the colors of the world above while below, the river rages endlessly onwards. Hydra is the name of a mythical sea monster; the soul and substance of this work is water.

After completing the earthwork Hydra’s Head in 1974, Nancy Holt began work on the unfinished film Niagara in 1975. A series of studies of water flowing along the river, the film observes the constant changes taking place on its surface.