DOUGLAS HUNTER: Solar – Ruin

DOUGLAS HUNTER: Solar – Ruin
EXHIBITION ON VIEW: JAN 9 – FEB 20

In Solar – Ruin I hope to capture something of the emotional experience of this abandoned industrial site, it’s stunning formal attributes, and the sense of wonder one feels when in the presence of these orphaned giants decaying in the desert. Giants that manage to convey great weight and lightless at the same time. Solar – Ruin is also a reflection on how industrial activity often marks the desert as a site of unsustainable human ambitions. Ambitions that aren’t always benevolent. In this case accusations arose and lawsuits were filed claiming that the site was a tax scam, its technology never intended to work. This possibility makes the site all the more mysterious in that the photos and artifacts assembled here speak directly to the effort and resources that went into its creation and that will impact the landscape for many years.

​Ultimately, I hope these elements will be kept in suspension, allowing viewers to acknowledge the site’s history while also experiencing the way it draws us into unexpected beauty crafted from steel, plastic, light and shadow.