Colorful painting: blue lake, tall reeds at left, burning island with swirling smoke. — Naturalist, artist and Maidu/Wintun cultural practitioner Diana Almendariz created this work, which showcases the wetlands exhibition in the UC Davis Art Center. It opens Sept. 20 and concludes Nov. 13. The work of UC Davis Professor Geoffrey Attardo is in the exhibit. (Art by Diana Almendariz.

Wetlands Exhibition Opens Sept. 20 at the Davis Arts Center

Work of Professor Geoffrey Attardo is Part of YoloSol Collective Exhibit

by Kathy Keatley Garvey
September 17, 2026

Smiling bearded man in cap outdoors with blurred group behind — candid photo — Professor Geoffrey Attardo at Cache Creek Nature Preserve. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

The highly anticipated YoloSol Collective's wetlands exhibition, "Good Fire, Living Water: The Gifts of a Marsh Economy"--to open Sunday, Sept. 20 at the Davis Arts Center and continue through Monday, Nov. 13--will include an interactive “Slice of the Wetlands” by UC Davis Professor Geoffrey Attardo, a medical entomologist-geneticist in the Department of Entomology and Nematology.

The exhibit will be open to the public on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on weekends from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The Davis Arts Center is located at 1919 F St., Davis.

The YoloSol Collective, an arts, culture and ecology collective guided by Wintun homeland cultural practitioners, is dedicated to restoring the ecological health of the Yolo bioregion.

Diana Almendariz in red blouse and black shawl seated behind handmade woven baskets and gourds — Naturalist, artist and Maidu/Wintun cultural practitioner Diana Almendariz. (Photo by Geoffrey Attardo)

The multimedia exhibit showcases the cultural, ecological and artistic practice of WintunMaidu culture-bearer Diana Almendariz and her daughters Christina Almendariz and Ooti Maxine, and also highlights Diana's collaboration with artists and scientists in the Yolo Bioregion.

Attardo's “Slice of the Wetlands” tank reveals the hidden world of aquatic plants and insects. He installed the project in collaboration with San Jose High School student Pranav Saran. He earlier displayed the flora and fauna of Cache Creek Nature Preserve at UC Davis Picnic Day.

"Diana and I went out and collected sediment, plants, and water from a wetland at Woodland Regional Park Preserve," Attardo said. "We got live tule and cattail rhizomes and planted them in the sediment so people can see the root systems as well as the invertebrates and other organisms that are in the tank."

Diana Almendariz will exhibit her landscape paintings, which are ‘encyclopedia’ images containing important cultural and ecological lessons

Other highlights of the wetlands exhibit, as listed on the website, include:

Ooti Maxine’s illustrations which bring a unique urban perspective on how environmental harm impacts mental health
A photo display showcasing activities from Diana and Christina Almendariz’ Traditional Ecological Knowledge workshops
A 14-foot tule boat crafted with participants from the Sacramento Native American Health Center
Interviews with Diana Almendariz, Attardo and City of Davis wildlife specialist John McNerney, who share different perspectives on wetland stewardship
A 25-foot representation of Liwaito (aka Putah) Creek created by Tanya Moriko Lieberman using a Japanese shibori resist-dye technique
Handcrafted paper artworks made from Native and invasive wetlands plants and created by Ro Mottsmith, Anuj Vaidya, and Morgan Strong
A Yolo Bioregional Wetlands Guide, the work of YoloSol Collective co-founder Juliette Beck, with contributions from YoloSol member azade Minasian, and others.

Educational display board showing labeled photos of microscopic organisms from Cache Creek Wetland — Part of Geoffrey Attardo's display at Briggs Hall, UC Davis Picnic Day. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

More than 95 percent of California’s wetlands have been destroyed over the last 200 years. "This exhibit seeks to cultivate a new generation of stewards who will care for these important ecosystems, which include the wetlands supported by the City of Davis’ wastewater management program," the organizers related. "By braiding Homeland Ecological Knowledge with an allied Western science perspective, and forging new traditions collaboratively, the exhibit offers multiple pathways for community involvement. Community members will be introduced to wetland stewardship from a Native perspective – what Diana Almendariz calls “the marsh economy,” and will learn how wetlands keep our soil and water clean, mitigate the impact of climate change, and nurture an intricate, biodiverse web of life."

Special public events include:

Second Friday Artabout, Oct. 9 and Nov. 13
Storytelling and Tule Workshop with with Diana and Christina Almendariz: Nov. 7 at 4 p.m.

Said Diana Almendariz: “Tule has been my creative muse for 30 years. It still thrives in the rivers and marshes of California… Tule, along with cattail, is at the heart of the marsh economy… I am now in the process of working with ecologists and scientists to renew our understanding of how we can restore the wetlands. It is clear that cultural knowledge about tule is a critical part of the tools required in this endeavor.”

Man explaining insect and nature photographs to three young adults at an indoor table — Professor Geoffrey Attardo answering questions at his Briggs Hall booth during UC Davis Picnic Day. (Photo by Kathy Keatley Garvey)

This exhibit is partially funded by the City of Davis Arts and Cultural Affairs Program, Davis Arts Center, the Geoffrey Attardo Lab, Pacific Southwest Center of Excellence in Vector Borne Diseases, and Imagining America: Artists and Scholars in Public Life.

Attardo's work at Cache Creek Nature Preserve includes the study of mosquitoes. "Mosquito-borne diseases are a growing global problem due to an array of complex factors," he said earlier this year. "Wetlands were stigmatized by western culture as sources of mosquitoes, disease, and sloth. It’s estimated that in California, more than 95 percent of the wetlands existing prior to western colonization have been drained and converted.”

"In contrast to these views, these ecosystems were an essential part of Californian Native American culture and considered sacred and treasured spaces. Native people relied on wetlands for clean water, abundant food, and raw materials for shelter, clothing, transportation, and ceremonial dress."

Attardo received the 2026 Distinguished Achievement in Teaching Award from the Pacific Branch, Entomological Society of America (PBESA). He joined the UC Davis Entomology and Nematology Department in 2017 after serving as a postdoctoral fellow and research scientist at Yale University School of Public Health, New Haven, Conn., where his research on tsetseflies and mosquitoes drew international acclaim.

Attardo's collaboration with a Bay Area musician resulted in a number of videos of wetland organisms to improvised electronic music. They include: