Of dirt and other art-worthy materials

Sometimes an artwork just sticks in your mind long after you have seen it.

Such is the case for me with an installation by Roger Asay and Rebecca Davis that I saw at Mesa Contemporary Arts about a year ago.

The artists collected dirt samples from several geographic regions of Arizona and mounded them into perfect inverted cones, each

more than a foot high. Then they lined up those dirt cones along a platform, subtly evoking a road of changing scenery as you travel through the state. And all the mounds were, really, were variations on the colors of brown and red, with some changes in texture along the way.

The installation was simple, daring and brilliant all at once.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a photo of the Asay/Davis work, but I can tell you with great aplomb that the artists will have their first solo exhibition with Larsen Gallery in Scottsdale beginning in October.

Called “A Journey Through the Woods,” the exhibition will focus mostly on wood sculptures by Asay/Davis, which are also quite stunning in their naturalism.

In the exhibition announcement from Larsen, the work is described as using found materials in order to comment on naturally occurring forms such as logjams and birds’ nests.

The artists state: “The goal is to entice the viewer into a fresh, direct experience of the reality of this raw natural material, in the hope ultimately of strengthening one’s feeling of connection to the natural universe that surrounds and embraces us all.”

I won’t say much more about their work or it will ruin the surprise. The show runs October 11 through November 30 at Larsen Gallery, just south of Main Street in Old Town Scottsdale.

Also, you can get a glimpse of the dirt installation I mentioned by looking in the exhibition archives at Mesa Contemporary Arts. Here’s the link:

http://www.mesaartscenter.com/index.php/museum/currentexhibits/wood-stone