Notes:

This slab was installed on a recently burned hillside alongside the Zêzere river in the Santarém District of central Portugal. The hillside is covered in fragrant Rock Rose bushes (“Esteva” in Portuguese), and one of the first to emerge in this region after fire activity. Unlike California, here in the Portugal hills, we are within the native range of Esteva, grounding this site with the essence of an ancestral homeland. 

Structurally, the monolith was built to decay slowly. It was made with proper outdoor installation materials and materials (no wood!) — and sealed for hornets and rain. The feet are buried and piled with a ceremonial tile shard mound.

I’m interested in how this work responds to the ecology, geology, and ceramic tile traditions of Portugal. I’m interested in the precise orientation of the sightlines created by its holes may create interesting interactions with natural cycles of the sun, moon, and other celestial bodies. For example, will the full moon ever be visible through any of the holes, If so at what time of year?

This completes a two year study of ceramic tile in Portugal as an artist in residence at Aviário Studio in Ferreira do Zêzere.

Thanks: João 1, João, 2, @cristiana.fernands, @aviariostudio, and the municipality of Ferreira do Zêzere for sort of giving me permission to install this on public land.

Species of Interest (Botanical and Geological):

Stone Pine tree
Cork Oak tree
European Chestnut tree
Myrtle tree
Wild Olive tree
Sandstone
Limestone
Clay and Terra Cotta
Physalia physalis (Portuguese Man‑o‑War)