Roden Crater

In 2001 I actually drove to Roden Crater on back roads using paper USGS maps and following the dotted lines. I entered through the back entrance, and drove to the top of the crater. As I was driving down a pickup truck was approaching, and there was only one route down.

It was James Turrell. He was none too happy. I apologized, and drove out. My architect girlfriend was livid with me for days

really uninspiring and unworthy website for something like the roden crater. even in the state its in right now, the website feels buggy. from the interface hijacking the scrolling, to the way the videos switch to a still image when you scroll down, it just feels broken, boring, and feels like it was put together in a hurry, and doesn't make me think 'wow i want to see what this is all about.' sad, because it would have been interesting to have seen something captivating that would have complimented james turrell's work.

This seems like a very interesting project, but the website kinda reads like a mad-person wrote it with the bizarre(to me) rhetoric about space and time and somewhat poor quality 3-D renderings. Clearly a lot of people are interested and invested in this project and making this space. Could anyone give a good explanation of what this project is/where this fits in modern art/science exploration?

If you prefer a narrative (+lots of pictures) I found out about Rosen Crator when I walked by Smithsonian magazine at the library, here’s the article an an excerpt

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/james-turrell-vi...

“One of the tunnels that Turrell has completed is 854 feet long. When the moon passes overhead, its light streams down the tunnel, refracting through a six-foot-diameter lens and projecting an image of the moon onto an eight-foot-high disk of white marble below. The work is built to align most perfectly during the Major Lunar Standstill every 18.61 years. The next occurrence will be in April 2025.”

Roden Crater is the life work of James Turrell, a sculptor whose medium is light - he creates visible immaterial objects by constructing spaces that bounce and reflect light to create unreal spaces and objects. It used to be common for people to fall into his installations because they could not sense the boundary between their observer space and the art.

I first become aware of James Turrell when a 3D graphics researcher during the late 80's. His work and creating 3D renderers capable of simulating his art was an inspiration.

Side tangent: his writing about his art is the inspiration for the "Tyrell" character in "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep" (BladeRunner novel). I remember reading that in a PKD interview.

I have seen a few installations of his work and they are really amazing to see in person. His work really messes with your perceptions in the best way.

The Long Now [10,000 Year Clock](https://longnow.org/clock/) is another interesting exercise in patience and long term thinking, high in the desert.

This looks like a structure you'd find on a planet in The Outer Wilds