"Across the desert south of Las Vegas, Nevada, rises a large, colorful anomaly. Seven colossal stone forms defy gravity with their teetering formations. The shapes, reminiscent of naturally-occurring hoodoos, seem poised between monumentality and collapse. The mammoth contemporary cairns created by internationally-renowned Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone evoke the art of meditative rock balancing, and mark his place in the history of Land Art".
For the last few years, this was our view in the distance as we sped along Interstate 15... always promising to stop one day. Yes, today was the day!
What catches your eye, in its periphery, is a man's creative expression of human presence in the desert. Seven Magic Mountains punctuates the Mojave with a poetic burst of form and color.
As we got closer, our appreciation grew. There was just something special about the brilliant colors and perceived effort it took to create this work.
Mediating between geological formations and abstract compositions, Rondinone’s Seven Magic Mountains consists of locally-sourced limestone boulders stacked vertically in groups ranging between three and six. Each stone boasts a different fluorescent color; each individual totem stands between thirty and thirty-five feet high. The artwork extends Rondinone’s long-running interest in natural phenomena and their reformulation in art.
“Seven Magic Mountains elicits
continuities and solidarities between human and nature,
artificial and natural, then and now.”
-Udo Rondinone
This detour was a surprisingly delightful one. It is definitely worth a short stroll through the desert. And if you're so inclined, you can create your own cairns, while appreciating the art before you!
posted under |
0 comments:
Post a Comment