It began last October when I had an idea about inflated globes floating in a pool. I do not ever stop thinking about water as a method of suspension, swimming pools or globes, therefore what would it be like to combine all three? I called my friend Tricia to see if she had access to a swimming pool that had not yet been drained. Turns out she was closing on a house in three days that had one and if I could acquire the props, borrow an air compressor, and photograph it in a small window between 6 hours of sleep and a 10 hour work day, I could do it (and so I did).
I was never a math major nor did I know the dimensions of the pool
despite staring at the satellite view of it on Google Maps hoping it would come to me. Surely
thirty would be enough, right? Wrong ....
... but it was a beautiful fall day though and I filed it away as something to consider later.
A month later, another thought occurred to me. What if I brought a 4' inflatable globe balloon to the U.S. Mexican border wall on my trip to Arizona in January and document it there? If I could acquire the prop, borrow an air compressor and convince two incredibly generous friends to help me photograph it, I could do it (and so I did).
I certainly do not have a degree in meteorology but having lived in the desert during the winter, you would think I would have remembered the wind in January but no, I did not. I took some mediocre photographs and Camden made a slow motion video of it before it popped on a cactus (above are the remains).
It was a colossal failure but I could not stop visualizing it and felt
it necessary to make art along the Border Wall when it is a daily
occurrence in the news. The concept of bringing "far closer to here" is very much a part of my current series,
Metaphorical Antipodes, and I wanted to find a way to make this happen.
When something is unsuccessful on a smaller scale, one would
logically deduce that resolving it before moving on to far larger would be
a wise idea but no.... I purchased a 7' inflatable helium globe with several
misspellings (yes, I will count them all and no, I will never be able to fold it in such a small square again).
On a rainy day in April, I inflated it after borrowing a compressor once again. I applied for a couple grants and (insert great amazement) received
one of them.
The first thing I purchased with the award money was an air compressor (surprise) and after several trials and errors, a leaf blower with a funnel attachment proved to be the best way to inflate this beast without access to electricity.
So what are the odds of failure once again? Is the third time really the charm? Am I truly driving 5000 miles in the heat of the summer and monsoon season to try? If I could acquire all the equipment, reserve the rental car and accommodations, and concoct an itinerary in a manner of three weeks, I could do it (and so I will).
