Professor’s art frames local landscapes

It is a frame because the art project, titled “You Are Here,” is composed of five steel windows, absent any panes of glass, and mounted on concrete benches. Anyone stopping to ponder the windows will also get a framed view of a local park, a playground, and the majestic Sandia Mountains.

Oversized steel windows painted with New Mexico colors are part of the outdoor art installation titled “You Are Here” at Ventana Ranch Community Park on the Albuquerque’s West Side. The work was designed by a New Mexico State University professor. (PAT VASQUEZ-CUNNINGHAM/JOURNAL)

“You get these different perspectives on the local landscapes,” said Stevens, noting that part of the community’s name, ventana, is Spanish for window. “The windows are a kind of device for looking at the world and being a part of the world, slowing time down, being in the moment.”

Having traveled to Nepal in recent years to work with copper artisans and to visit various stupas, a mound-like sacred monument, Stevens added, “With this window project, my hope is it will become a touchstone of the community, functioning as might a stupa. … Above all, I hope it will be kind of a foundation for many happy memories.”

So, while the sculpture might remind locals to slow down and soak up the powerful views, Stevens is also pleased that the sturdy sculptures provide an opportunity for children to “just be like a monkey and crawl all over them.”

The window forms are inspired by traditional styles one can find in historic New Mexico architecture. One is modeled after a window in Stevens’ own late 19th century adobe home in Las Cruces’ historic Mesquite neighborhood next to the old downtown. Stevens said she etched “miles of wood grain texture into the steel surfaces.”

The windows, varying in height from 5-foot-9 to 6-foot-8, are painted in classic New Mexico colors, hues of blue, green and turquoise.

Stevens launched the project by seeking a commission from the city of Albuquerque through New Mexico’s Art in Public Places legislation, which requires that 1 percent of public capital appropriations be spent on artwork. The Albuquerque project called for proposals to create outdoor works for each of Albuquerque’s nine city council districts. The windows artwork, created within a $30,000 budget, is to be formally unveiled on April 13.

Stevens emphasized the project was a collaborative effort. David Twitty, a professor in Doña Ana Community College’s welding technology program, suggested that to construct the piece, Stevens use the 19-student fabrication class taught by welding professor Jose “Pep” Gomez.

Gomez, who oversaw student construction, also hand-forged window handles, hinges and a white-winged dove that perches inside one of the windows, Stevens noted.

“With a whole lot of guidance and coordination over … 14 weeks, the students were able to utilize their newly acquired metal-working skills to convert several thousand pounds of structural steel into a public art project that we hope will enhance the lives of everyone who encounters it,” Gomez said.

The windows were cleaned, primed and painted at the Doña Ana College’s Workforce Center by an instructor, a technician and welding student. An engineering student was recruited by the College of Engineering’s associate dean to manage the concrete pour when the windows were installed in Ventana Ranch.

Stevens said the experience has led her to want to do more collaborative, public art projects. “For me, it goes back to those relationships and realizing how rich our campus is, having faculty, staff and students, such as these,” Stevens said.