Welcome to Tucson's Luminarias del Pueblo 2006 project. In the past there has been an auction held to sell the Luminarias. Instead of bidding on the sculptures, this year the fifteen finest pieces will be purchased prior to the sculpture being created. The limited number of pieces available for your own collection, or to offer to your favorite nonprofit, or even to donate to the City, has created a higher standard and a higher commissioning fee. This year's pieces will each be sold at $10,000. The price was pre-determined by a panel of gallery owners and others with extensive arts backgrounds. All sculptures will have a solar panel for illumination, lending itself to a glorious piece of art both in the day and evening. Artists will receive half of the proceeds, thus giving them more in return for their artistic endeavors.

Photos of all 15 proposed Luminarias are below.
Click an image to enlarge and begin the photo tour.

		Joseph Birdsong Flor de la Luna SOLD! The sculpture will appear to be an abstracted flower with copper tubes extending out of the center sphere and from between the petal panels. Each pipe will have a glass element, spheres of about 3" diameter. Dimensions: 7 x 6 x 6'
		Caryl Clement and Artist/Fabricator: David Flynn & Diablo Forge Dreams on the Wing Portrays the mystical dreams of a raven. The head is bowed with the beak resting on its chest suggesting a state of sleep. One wing is fully unfurled. The body and head will be portrayed in a stylized manner. Dimensions: 8 x 6 x 2.3' Weight: 200-250 lbs
		Hazel Colditz The Four Noble Truths The concept is about humanity and our place in the universe. The bottom half is rusted steel with Japanese script which will be cut with a computerized laser. The Four Noble Truths will be cut vertically, translated from Buddhist scriptures, the truth of suffering, the cause, end of suffering, and enlightenment. Height: 8'
		Nancy Denzler Arizona Monsoon II Living in Arizona, surrounded by desert and mountain views during the monsoon season, is inspiring. The concept is to create a diorama combining mountains and lighting. A series of two-dimensional elements portray a three-dimensional image using strobes and LED colored lights. Dimensions: 4 x 6'
		Sterling Ford Grey Ghost The sculpture is based on the Couses White-tailed Deer. The entire sculpture will be composed of hand forged metal. It will take on a spiritual almost ghostlike image as it illuminates itself in several areas outside the sculpture. Dimensions: 7 x 6 x 10'
		Everett Grondin Jr. Cowboy's Oasis SOLD! This piece will display the classic cowboy with his horse and dog at a watering trough fed by the windmill that overlooks the scene. As the blades turn in the wind they will power a pump that circulates water from a holding tank hidden within the windmill to the trough. Dimensions: 12 x 7'
		Alex Heveri Downward Flight The medium is ½' steel, 1' slab glass, epoxy and lighting. The lighting will be encased in dual sided wings, allowing the sun to light up the wings during the day and lighting to illuminate at night. The lighting will be sourced from solar energy and 2 10 watt light bulbs from a panel set up separate from the sculpture. Dimensions: 7 x 7'
		Daniel Hornung and Joseph Lupiana Mixed Signals The solar powered traffic light blinks red to green to yellow randomly and has a life sized person starring at the signals trying in vain to make sense of the information.
		Brookhart Jonquil Relativity The concept has to do with the intellectual lens through which we view the natural universe, particularly as it relates to time. The way time functions is like a progressive moment, it is not uniform, but slows and speeds up in relation to light and gravity.
		Leiloni Kammerer Solar Systems Glass is such a beautiful and versatile medium, it easily keeps me inspired. I enjoy the excitement and the process of glass fusing, metal fabrication and I like the idea of functional art.
		Joseph O'Connell Beautiful Beast The inspiration for this piece comes from the fanciful monsters found in children's books - the ones that manage to scare you and evoke empathy at the same time. The visual effect is that of a 3D illustration made from rapidly drawn lines floating in space. Dimensions: 7 x 3 x 4'
		Joseph O'Connell Projector The cylinder is made entirely of 90 steel words and a skeletal armature to support them. In the center of the cylinder are a row of extremely bright LEDs that behave as point sources, projecting the silhouettes of the words onto nearby surfaces. Dimensions: 6.5 x 2'
		Joseph O'Connell Public Drums This is a one-of-a-kind electronic drum set that anyone can play day or night. You can tap out a rhythm with their fingertips. The glowing heads of this drum set are touch sensitive. Dimensions: 6.5 x 3 x 2'
		Paul Orzech SPF 60 SPF 60, so named to match the number of watts powered by his solar panels, will be a humorous character - an eight-foot-tall anthropomorphic saguaro cactus. This large figure will be made of high density industrial Styrofoam and covered in polyurea, a modern material made of a resin blend that is used in all aspects of industry and is known for its strength, flexibility, durability, and water resistance. Dimensions: 8' x 3'
		Chris Tanz Luz Azul The phrase "Luz Azul" (Blue Light in Spanish) is a palindrome. It reads the same forwards and backwards. Here it provides an illuminated mobile, a sculpture comprising seven suspended lanterns. The lanterns are made of 1/8" laser-cut aluminum plate, translucent acrylic panels & paint finish. They are twelve-sided polyhedral, coming towards a point above & below but not fully closed.