Confluence Decree

Confluence Decree was a series of magical dispatches from and to the sewer system of St. Louis. Departing from the principle that a great deal of power and potential is tied up in a vast infrastructure shared by more than a million people in the greater St. Louis area, Confluence Decree offered the grounds for alternative political imaginary through a reimagination of ancient magical practices applied to contemporary infrastructure.

Over the course of Counterpublic 2023, three issues of Confluence Decree were be released, each addressed to a mundane piece of the sewer system: a manhole, a pipe, a drain, etc. Released once monthly, each issue continued the story connecting lead, magic, contracts, consent, rivers, history and presence in St Louis. Additionally, Confluence Decree invited local actors to express their wishes for the system and their life to the mutual power, extensive potential, and collective being embodied by the sewer system itself. Each issue also included poetic/literary connections to larger questions about earth, water, and magic with invited contributions.