Press
Cabin Porn: Shantyboat
The Rivers of North America By Zach Klein, Freda MoonContributed…
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That Was Weird: Rediscovering The River [AUDIO]
Join Archives & Collections Catalyst, Marla Novo, and Abbott Square…
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Atlas Obscura: An Artist, a Shantyboat, and the Lost History of American River Communities
Wes Modes is documenting life along America’s waterways. Atlas ObscuraBy…
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Boating: Wes Modes, Artist/Documentarian/ Shanty Boater
Armed with a homemade shanty boat and a video camera,…
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First Friday Santa Cruz: Secret History Project Tells Untold Stories of the San Lorenzo River
For local artist Wes Modes, this process of finding and…
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HeraldWeekly: The Lost History of American River Communities, Revisited by an Artist in a Shantyboat
HeraldWeeklyby Mark Villanueva Wes Modes is documenting life along America’s…
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Portsmouth Daily-Times: American River People
Portsmouth Daily-Timesby Ivy Potter Several artists have made their way…
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Gallipolis Daily Tribune: Shantyboaters seek river people secrets
Gallipolis Daily Tribuneby Dean Wright GALLIPOLIS — A trio of…
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Clutch MOV: A Secret History of American River People
Clutch MOVby Sarah Arnold Though once abundant along the shores…
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Marietta Times: Shantyboat historian spends time in Marietta
"It is so cool to be in that space, gathering…
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A shantyboat trip down the Ohio [VIDEO]
A video created by Post-Gazette staff photographer Andrew Rush.
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Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Collecting, making history on the Ohio River
Pittsburgh Post-Gazetteby Christian Snyder When Wes Modes arrived in Pittsburgh,…
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WTRF: “Shanty Boat” sails away today in Moundsville
According to Wes Modes, the project hopes to uncover the…
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Wheeling News-Register: California researcher travels Ohio River in shantyboat to learn about river life
The Intelligencer, Wheeling News-Registerby Mike Jones WHEELING, W.Va. – Wes…
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Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: California artist will capture life on the Ohio River in a homemade shantyboat
Pittsburgh Post-Gazetteby Christian Snyder Backyards tell stories, Wes Modes says,…
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Marietta Times: Artist will stop in Marietta on Ohio River journey
The culture of people who have grown up and lived…
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Insider Louisville: Exhibit on America’s river heritage finds berth at Portland Museum
Ahead of a shantyboat trip down the Ohio River this…
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Small Boats: River People – Shantyboat on the Sacramento River
Wes Modes spent two years building a shantyboat using salvaged…
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Highlands Current: Shanty on the River
Highlands Current By Ross Corsair Wes Modes and Lauren Benz,…
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Rockland/Westchester Journal: A shanty in Haverstraw: A floating art project explores the lives and history of ‘river people’
Rockland/Westchester Journal by Rochel Leah Goldblatt HAVERSTRAW – Wes Modes stood…
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The Daily Freeman: Shanty boat crew, docking in Kingston, gathers disappearing history of nation’s river people
The Daily Freeman by William J. Kemble KINGSTON, N.Y. >>…
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The Saratogian: Steamboat Meet brings ships, tales to Waterford
The Saratogian By Joseph Phelan WATERFORD, N.Y. >> Over the…
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WAMC Albany: Searching For Hudson River Stories On A Shanty Boat [AUDIO]
WAMC Public Radio By Lucas Willard Listen Now to…
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Post-Star: Shantyboat docks in Fort Edward to collect Hudson River stories
Post-Star by Gwendolyn Craig FORT EDWARD — It’s not every day…
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Santa Cruz Sentinel: “A Secret History” at Ebb & Flow River Arts Festival
Artist Wes Modes leaned against his shantyboat’s helm by the…
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BBC Outlook – Building my own ‘shanty boat’ [AUDIO]
Wes Modes has spent the last few summers sailing along…
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BBC Between The Ears – The Shanty Boat [AUDIO]
In a rich tapestry of watery atmosphere, frustration, intimacy, fear…
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Fair Companies: How shantyboats down the Mississippi helped build a culture
Long before Wes Modes began planning a journey down the…
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Laughing Squid: Artist Rides Rivers in a Homemade Shantyboat to Learn About the People Who Live on the Banks
Wes Modes, an artist and lecturing professor at UC Santa…
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Tribune-Courier: Floating Artist
In general, when people are posed with the question, ‘What…
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Paduca Sun: Artist-in-residence Modes slated to discuss journey of shantyboat
Paducah Arts Alliance artist-in-residence Wes Modes and his 1940s-era shantyboat…
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AL.com: On a shantyboat in Alabama, nights are hot, food is good and stories flow
Smack dab in the middle of the Tennessee River, between…
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Paducah WPSD: Secret History of River People coming to Paducah
The River Discovery Center in Paducah will host an exhibit…
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West Kentucky Star: Artist Concludes Daring River Voyage in Paducah
A rustic recreated 1940s shanty boat, a daring river voyage,…
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Alabama WHNT: California man lives on a ‘Shanty Boat’ documenting Florence residents
It’s one of the oddest sights you might see on…
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Times Daily: Telling secrets: California artist gathers river stories from a shanty
Times Daily By Monica Collier For four days, Friday through…
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Florence Courier-Journal: The River’s Life and People
A rustic recreated 1940s shanty boat, a daring river voyage,…
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WAFF Huntsville: Shanty floating down the TN seeking hidden histories of river people [VIDEO]
Get close enough to the Tennessee river, you can hear…
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WVLT Knoxville: Shanty boat tours America’s rivers via Knoxville [VIDEO]
It's a hot summer day on Knoxville's Volunteer Landing and…
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UK DailyMail: Could you live on a ‘shantyboat’? Artist calls this tiny homemade floating shack home as he journeys around the Tennessee River
A homemade 'shanty boat' is currently floating down the Tennessee…
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Huntsville Times: Fishing For Stories
Artist cruises into Huntsville today (or tomorrow) on a shantyboat…
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Guntersville Gleam: He’s running the river in a shanty boat
Guntersville Advertiser-Gleam by Joe Cagle People in Guntersville are used…
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Knoxville Mercury: Life Aboard the Shantyboat Dotty [SLIDESHOW]
Knoxville Mercury By Clay Duda [metaslider id=5031]
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Knoxville Mercury: Shanty Dreams: A Quest for the Forgotten Stories of the Tennessee River
“What the hell have I gotten myself into?” is all…
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Chattanooga Times Free Press: Rollin’ on the River: Artist heading down Tennessee River, documenting the lives of river people
Life on America's vast rivers always fascinated Wes Modes. As…
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Chattanooga Times Free Press: Man and dog to explore Tennessee River on self-made shantyboat
Shantyboat stops along the Tennessee River As of print, the…
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Knoxville News Sentinel: California artist launches 652-mile Tennessee River trip from Volunteer Landing
Docked at Volunteer Landing at Knoxville's downtown waterfront this week…
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Knoxville Mercury: Artist to Launch in Knoxville, Collect Stories of ‘River People’ along the Tennessee
Over the past couple of years California-based artist Wes Modes…
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UCSC: LASER talk to spotlight research on pumas, filmmaking, river people, and ancient DNA
Over the last few summers, inspired by historical accounts of…
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Minnesota Post: The 5 standout public art works of 2015
Everything on this list broadly fits into the category of…
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New Orleans Advocate: Researchers trace Mississippi River, listening and recording every trickle, gurgle and swoosh
Outside Guttenberg, Iowa, they met Wes Modes, who invited them…
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Muscatine Journal: California artist stops in Muscatine on river odyssey
Wes Modes, Santa Cruz, California, is on the second leg…
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Open Rivers: Knowing the Mississippi
We asked a diverse group of river people to respond…
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Quad-City Times: California artist travels Mississippi for ‘river people’ project
If you happen to see Wes Modes, 48, of Santa…
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International Sculpture Center: Wes Modes: Secret History of American River People
The Mississippi River runs deep through American culture. From early…
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Waukon Standard: California artist seeking stories of river history, lifestyles
A rustic recreated 1940s shantyboat, a daring river voyage, and…
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Heartland Boating: A Secret History of American River People
Ten years ago, Wes Modes of Santa Cruz, California, was…
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Minneapolis City Pages: River City Revue explores Mississippi culture
The event gives you a chance to see the art…
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StarTribune: Pictures of the day.
Top Photos for June 30. Kara Yorkhall and daughter Juliette,3,…
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Dubuque Telegraph Herald: River exhibition will dock in Dubuque
A rustic shanty boat, a daring river voyage and a…
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Artist On Art: Wes Modes, Artist Interview
Artist Activist, Wes Modes came onto Artists on Art, June…
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1 Mississippi: Reeling in River Stories
What would you do with a houseboat the size of…
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Reddit: I am an artist spending the summer in a shantyboat on the Mississippi River gathering stories of river people. AMA!
I am Wes Modes, DIY boater and artist. For years…
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Santa Cruz Sentinel: Artist turns a journey down the Mississippi into rich oral history
We're all sharing our "How I Spent My Summer Vacation"…
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Small and Not So Small Town Press [Updated]
We’ve done our best to try to let people know…
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La Crosse WXOW: 2 art students take journey in shantyboat on Mississippi
Two art students from California are traveling down the Mississippi…
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La Crosse Tribune: Artist plies Mississippi in Shantyboat to net historical portraits
California-based artists Wes Modes and Kai Dalgleish are traveling down…
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Winona Post: History afloat down the river
It is August on Latsch Island, that beautiful time of…
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Minneapolis Star Tribune: Shantyboat heads down the Mississippi, gathering stories
The Mississippi River has changed in many ways over the…
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Hastings Star Gazette: California artist in shantyboat stops in Hastings during Mississippi River tour
Hastings Star Gazette/Pierce County Herald by Chad Richardson It’s not uncommon…
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Reddit: I am an artist who hopes you don’t read about my death when we launch our homemade (and untested) shantyboat on the Mississippi River AMA!
For years I’ve been building DIY boats, often out of…
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