for the past 30 years or so an astounding renovation has been underway below roden crater, a 3km wide dormant volcano crater located northeast of flagstaff in arizona, the brilliance of which probably won't be apparent until the large-scale art installation opens when ready, apparently in 2012. the artist responsible, james turrell, 'studied optics and perceptual psychology' and is known as a sculptor of light, over the years having used natural and artificial light to help create his work, many in the form of optical illusions, and challenge people's perceptions of the world around them. many of his pieces involve something called a skyspace, essentially a room which has had precisely calculated sections of the ceilling and/or walls removed in order for light to enter the room at a specific angle. a definition from scottsdalepublicart.org...
a skyspace is a large, elegant viewing chamber with benches along its interior walls. the skyspace creates an illusion which makes viewers feel as if they are seated in an ocean of air. the visual phenomenon of the skyspace is created through its exacting architecture coupled with a complex lighting system. at sunrise and sunset, changes in the natural light give viewers the sensation of the sky descending upon them. the unusual visual effect (called celestial vaulting) achieved within the skyspace is quite difficult, if not impossible, to describe.
with roden crater, turrell has taken on an enormous task and surely one of the most ambitious art projects ever created. after purchasing it back in 1979 and years of meticulous planning he set about sculpting and hollowing the upper parts of the volcano by removing endless tons of earth. he has since filled those spaces with numerous light-filled chambers and a huge 854ft long concrete tunnel which serves as an entrance from the side of the volcano. depending on the location of these chambers and/or the current position of the sun, moon and stars, different light shows will be experienced by the viewer and various astronomical events will be given a truly unique viewpoint.
a few weeks ago roden crater was featured on a great series called 'sculpture diaries' and a camera crew were invited in by turrell for the first time. it looked absolutely phenomenal on film - turrell has obviously devoted an enormous chunk of his life to this project and it shows. just the architecture within roden crater is exceptional, but to then realise this has all been created in a gigantic dormant volcano is quite something. i remember reading somewhere, before i'd seen much of it myself, that this would be considered a wonder of the world when eventually completed. i can absolutely understand why. unfortunately i'm unable to locate an embeddable version of the programme to show you, however you can still watch the episode for a couple of days on the channel4 website here (it's the episode shown on the 14th september and roden crater is featured towards the end). bear in mind that it's probably only viewable to people in the uk so you may have to find a way round it. if anyone locates a copy on youtube let me know and i'll add it.
[edit] here's the excerpt. it's crap quality and there's no sound for some reason. it's still worth watching though.
below are some screencaps from the programme. they're not great quality but it's the best i could do.
