Artists Paddle 350 Miles Up Erie Canal For“Mule's Passage”

(MENAFN- USA Art News) The artistic duo Z Behl and Kim Moloney, known as BALONEY STEEL, began their 350-mile paddling expedition up the Erie Canal to Buffalo in early August. Dubbed the“Mule's Passage,” the journey launched from Waterford, Upstate New York, at the Eastern Gate corridor, the initial lock system that connects the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers to the canal network.

Before their departure, the artists were celebrated by supporters and local elders who sang historical canal folk tunes on August 7, 2026. Playwright Judy Tate, founder of the American Slavery Project, delivered an emotional spoken-word piece. Behl and Moloney then embarked in their mule-decorated canoe, paddling against the current.

The“Mule's Passage” is an art and anthropology project that reinterprets the woman's body as both an industrial engine and a historical narrator. By decorating their canoe like a mule, the artists honor the overlooked labor that powered the early towpath canal, which significantly impacted the United States and the global economy. The expedition involves daily six-hour paddling sessions and five weeks of camping, aiming to conclude on September 5 in Buffalo after traversing counties that include six territories of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.

Beyond retracing old towpaths and studying folklore, the project also examines the Erie Canal's role in Indigenous displacement, noting how its development encroached upon Native American lands, disrupted stewardship practices, and violated agreements with Indigenous communities. The artists are conducting interviews with ecologists, historians, activists, and residents along the canal to explore the waterway's ecological impact.

The project receives support from the Erie Canal Museum Artist-in-Residence (AIR) program and the New York State Canal Corporation. Additional sponsors include Bixpy, which provided an electric outboard solar-charging motor, and Camp Chow, which donated dehydrated meals. The AIR program aims to foster creative engagement with the canal by“blending art with storytelling to illuminate its cultural, environmental, and historical significance,” as stated on its website. The Everson Museum of Art in Syracuse is another partner, and it will host an exhibition of“Mule's Passage” documentation in spring 2027.

Source: Hyperallergic

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