Carlsbad: Cielo

New Mexico Arts and Carlsbad MainStreet presented the fourth annual TIME – Temporary Installations Made for the Environment in Carlsbad in fall 2008. New Mexican artists from throughout the state were invited to create temporary environmental artworks based on the theme cielo. Nine artworks were exhibited in downtown Carlsbad at Halagueno Arts Park (Carlsbad Museum and Art Center and Carlsbad Public Library) and at the Eddy County Courthouse. The artworks were displayed for approximately six weeks, and at the end of the exhibition were disassembled and removed leaving no trace of ever having existed.

Participating TIME artists included Cecilia Stanford, Donna Barnitz and Colleen Konetzni, Linda Brewer, Lisa Rubin, Cordelia Rose, Michael Orgel and Arthur Rosenberg, Paula Castillo, Zoe Wolfe and Steven Shelendich, and Becky Holtzman.

Featured Work:

Heaven on Earth - Cecilia Stanford
The work was a physical statement on the concept of Heaven and Earth. The piece was comprised of pavers covered with a mirrored mosaic laid on the ground in a meandering path. The pavers clustered into cloud-like shapes that reflected the sky.

Untitled – Donna Branitz/Colleen Konetzni
The piece featured an installation of painted flags with features similar to a wind chime. The flags included images of the New Mexico sky and the Guadalupe Mountains visible from Carlsbad. The chimes added another sensory layer to the installation.

Stargazer Op – Linda Brewer
Major constellations visible from Carlsbad in November were the focal point of the installation. The mixed-media work created a star map to indentify the stars, planets, and constellations over Carlsbad. The interactive map was large enough to stand in. The goal of the work was to make astronomy accessible to everyone and celebrate the beauty of the New Mexico’s sky.

Star Walk – Lisa Rubin
The work created a physical walkway through a constellation. Participants had the opportunity to interact with astronomy. The piece served as a star map by day and mirror to the nighttime sky. The work included a series of solar lamps placed in the pattern of constellations visible in Carlsbad during the autumn.

Sky Labyrinth – Cordelia Rose
The work reflected the night sky on the ground in a labyrinth made of interlocking spirals of rock, clay bricks, and ropes of LED lights. Viewers entered the labyrinth oriented at the meridian of the Southern Cross constellation and exited at the North Star Polaris. The piece encouraged visitors to walk the path and enjoy the visual beauty.

 

Untitled – Micheal Orgel and Arthur Rosenberg
A pyramid was fabricated from multiple layers of twine-tied bamboo, with a carved marble crescent representing the moon suspended from the apex. The pyramid structure drew the viewer’s eye to the sky. All materials used were from the natural world and the work was tied together without nails, screws, or glue.

Blue Firmament – Paula Castillo
The work was an audio composition of digital recordings from a random selection of sounds. The sounds were enhanced and edited to create an artwork of projected sounds activated by sensors to encourage public involvement.

Under the Rainbow – Zoe Wolfe and Steven Shelendich
The work consisted of a rainbow spectrum of seven arches; each arch, a solid color of nylon fabric. The arches were arranged in a curve referencing the arch of rainbows. Viewers were able to walk through the arches and experience the color first-hand above and around them.

No Blue Without Orange – Becky Holtzman
Several connected organically created orange hoops, were strung among low tree branches. The hoops were placed on branches with clear views to the sky. The sky provided the contrast to the orange circles as they swayed in the trees. The work was made from branches and twigs, covered with bright vermillion papier mâché varnished with clear shellac, and connected with monofilament.