Oscar Santillán

For Solaris, Santillán gathered sand at the Atacama Desert, melted it into glass and then polished it into a photographic lens. This ‘desert eye’ was brought back to Atacama and used to photograph the landscape while capturing its relationship to the sun, stars and moon. The Atacama has been called an astronomer’s paradise and is home to numerous large telescopes because its arid climate provides clear skies. The piece suggests the desert is a knowledge-holding observing subject rather than a passive object of contemplation.

Santillán spoke about their work for our Exhibition Audio Guide.

Catalogue

View the exhibition catalogue HERE, not available in print.

‘Chronos Cosmos: Deep Time, Open Space’ transforms Socrates Sculpture Park into a gateway to the universe, presenting artworks that consider space, time, and matter in relationship to celestial entities and earth-bound processes. In the open-air environment of the Long Island City waterfront park, the exhibition uses scale to put the universe in context, creating connection points to space and time.