Partnership
Roden Crater
In 2018, Arizona State University launched an unprecedented academic partnership with visual artist James Turrell and his Roden Crater Project.
The collaboration centers the monumental earthwork in Northern Arizona as a prompt for transdisciplinary research and learning. It is a relationship that demonstrates the power of art, and individuals, to transform thinking.
The Artist
James Turrell
For over half a century, the American artist James Turrell has worked directly with light and space to create artworks that engage viewers with the limits and wonder of human perception. Turrell, an avid pilot who has logged over 12,000 hours flying, considers the sky as his studio, material and canvas.
Roden Crater is an unmatched, large-scale artwork and naked eye observatory
Roden Crater is set within a volcanic cinder cone and is both a monumental artwork and a naked eye observatory. Through a series of aligned tunnels, portals and apertures, Turrell is forming over 20 discrete viewing spaces and chambers throughout the Crater. When it opens, visitors will be able to experience the light from celestial objects within spaces and the celestial objects themselves when looking out.
Partners
Roden Crater and Arizona State University
ASU’s collaboration with James Turrell, one of the world’s finest contemporary artists, and the non-profit Skystone Foundation that manages Roden Crater, helps to amplify the artist’s vision and fundamentally transform education.
Arizona State University
Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona, is a public research university ranked #1 in the United States for innovation, dedicated to accessibility and excellence.
Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts
The Herberger Institute is the largest comprehensive art and design college in the country and includes the schools of arts, media and engineering; design; film; music, dance and theatre; and the ASU Art Museum.
Skystone Foundation
The Skystone Foundation is a nonprofit organization responsible for the fundraising, administration, realization and operation of Roden Crater.