Abstract

Visible From Space is the name of a thought experiment. It is an open series that exists in multiple materials – video, relief prints, installation, projection, handmade paper, artist’s books, found objects, field notes, interviews, essays, and site specific events. I am proposing to exhibit several of my ongoing video experiments from this series in the context of the ‘Arabian Nights’ panel format.  In particular, I have a number of videos of experiments performed on residency near Death Valley with rockets and balloons, and a number of experiments performed on the US/Mexico border using drones / UAV’s that I believe will generate a charged conversation.This work erupted from a fanciful supposition to create drawings on the Earth so large they would be visible from the moon. For such a feat, the stroke width of the line would need to be close to 60 miles wide in order for barely a hairline to be visible from that distance. It is charming to think that the Great Wall of China is visible from space – but this is merely a popular mythology. It is difficult to resolve an image of the Great Wall even from the International Space Station with the naked eye – which orbits about 250 miles above the Earth, let lone from outer space or nearby celestial bodies.  More information about the project can be found here:
paulcatanese.com/artwork/visible/index.html

• Paul Catanese, Columbia College Chicago, USA