-
Arenas Blancas Pt. 2: Impression Of Scale
- a Film
- by Ryder Thomas White
- Description (english) White Sands National Monument, in the Tularosa Basin some miles from Alamagordo, New Mexico, is the world’s largest gypsum desert. Its 700-some square kilometres are home to brilliant white dunes, unique desert flora and fauna, and, of course, the atom bomb. On all sides, the Monument is surrounded by White Sands Missile Range, where some of the world’s deadliest military apparatus is proven. This contrast between the serene and the violent inspired the Arenas Blancas series. Part 2: Impression Of Scale takes as its source material the individual gypsum crystals that form the eponymous dunes. By photogramming the sand grains that make up the desert, one is subject to a manipulation of experienced scale: the objects flying past on screen are at once microscopic and galactic. To further emphasize the immensity of space that exists all around us, the original source material is filtered through red and cyan filters on an optical printer and the film is intended for viewing through anaglyph 3D glasses. Note: Film is in progress, with expected completion April 2016. Video Password: gypsum
