We just completed our Create-Your-Own-Sculpture-Treasure Hunt (CYOSTH) for Eugene’s Visual Arts Week! Hoorah!
There are two ways to participate in Create-Your-Own Sculpture Treasure Hunts…
1. Click on one of the treasure hunts below (or here: Treasure Hunts) and follow the treasure hunt instructions to create your own artwork!
2. Or design your own treasure hunt and we will then curate it into the selection on the DIYSculpture.com Treasure Hunts page for fellow & future treasure hunt sculptors!
Submit it to
02020*, August 6-15
For Visual Arts Week in Eugene, Oregon we are sponsoring a Create-Your-Own Sculpture Treasure Hunt! Follow the instructions on one of the five posters we commissioned from local artists, and then share your creation/experience with the world! Or not. Art is just as magnificent, maybe more, when it is personal. Not every incredible emotion and engagement need be public.
Create-Your-Own-Sculpture Treasure Hunt
If you do upload it and want to share please use these tags #diysculpture #eugfun #cyosth
Eugene Visual Arts Week
Here are the 5 Treasure Hunt Posters we commissioned from Eugene Difficult Music Ensemble, Jorah LaFleur, Mija Andrade, Pat Luther, Patricia Montoya Donohue.
You can click on a poster to see it full size, or download a pdf. Visit DIYSculpture.com for bios and more info!
For maximum Treasure Hunt Fun, visit
- Sugarpine Bakery at 2866 Crescent Ave to find Scene 1
- Funagain Games at 1280 Willamette St to find Scene 2
- Oregon Art Supply at 1020 Pearl St to find Scene 3
- Sundance Natural Foods at 748 E 24th Ave to find Scene 4
- Tsunami Books at 2585 Willamette St to find Scene 5
- Manifest Beer at 39 West Broadway to find Scene 6
Find CYOSTH at DIYSculpture.com
This project was funded and supported and made possible by The City of Eugene Cultural Services, some of the finest people you could ever hope to meet.
* Earthbound Moon uses five digit dating to help integrate the future into our thinking about time. The leading zero reminds us that we benefit from thinking about the next 12,000 years as much as or more than the past 12,000. Thank you Stewart Brand and Long Now Foundation for this inspiration.
We were so busy terraforming Earth that we forgot all about the interwebs! Silly EbM! You can’t terraform the Real World without tarrying in the Virtual World!
Below is a list of projects we have collaborated on over the past decade. In the future (but not so far into the future that they need that fifth digit) we will create pages and pages of photos and information for our projects. Until then it is a super-hip retro scroll. Imagine we are so cool that we not only plan art out 100,000+ years into the future, we also plan webpages to subtly instill a sense of ancient inevitability in our project. So cool, our pages scroll like the most wicked papyrus doc you ever imagined, you know the one.* It’s our little secret. Don’t worry EbM won’t tell.
* If we didn’t think it would be going too far, we would design the page to scroll side to side, instead of up to down. Then we could instill our desires using the most wicked cave painting you ever imagined. Or the most wicked, flickering cave shadow, as the case may be…
Welcome by Heidi Hove, Bledsoe, Texas, USA 02010
Welcome consists of a base of cement, an iron pipe, and a red lightbox with yellow text that reads, “Welcome.” During daylight hours, the batteries in the lightbox are charged by solar cells that light up the text after dark. Taking her starting point in the current locality of the work and the surroundings that Bledsoe comprises (imagine collapsing barns, oil drills, and desert scenery), Hove designed a site-specific and illuminated sculpture that takes the shape of a truck-stop beacon. According to the artist, she wanted to “create a scenery where random passersby on their way to and from Bledsoe might wonder about the message, design, and location of the sign.” An object such as this in the middle of nowhere might seem completely detached and isolated from its surroundings; but for someone who is alone, it might also insistently light up the rugged surroundings, providing fertile soil for optimism— and perhaps even a brighter future for the area. On the other hand, the sign might seem to be so mislocated that its cinematic characteristics are emphasized; to a viewer, it could heighten Bledsoe’s surreal and abandoned identity to a disturbing degree, perhaps even making the viewer doubt the sign’s very assertion of welcome.
To our incredible joy, the local community does not feel it is mislocated. Three years after we installed it, on one of our regular visits back to Bledsoe, we discovered that the community had built a road and turnaround out near the sign, making it far more accessible for local visitors wanting to show it off. Earlier this year, EbMites in Lubbock, an hour north, replaced the lighting and electric, and cleaned the solar panel, giving it back its bright shining luminosity in the night! Ultimately, our projects are successful when they become the property of the local community. We declare every site a commons, but if the local community does not use the site as a commons, then that declaration is really no more than an artful dodge and philosophical statement. In this case, we were fortunate that the community took us up on the offer. Thank you Bledsoe! And thank you Statens Kunstrad!
Open Source Sculpture Garden, Lifeguard by Daniel Evans, Bledsoe, Texas, USA 02010
Although not a commissioned work, an elegant misreading when we lectured at Texas Tech University, opened the door to a new possibility: Accidental Open Source Sculpture Gardens. Artist Daniel Evans understood our lecture in his TTU class to describe our installation at Bledsoe as the creation of an open source sculpture garden — the center of a desert site open to any and all for their sculptural dreams. A few months later he became our first non-commissioned artist, installing a beautiful lifeguard chair to watch over the desert and Heidi Hove’s Welcome sign. Ten years later, his artwork remains, solid, stable, and lovely, with a gorgeous view.
If we are ever to complete our terraformation of Earth, it will require many more such Open Source Sculptures. Our sites worldwide will need to blossom with uncommissioned works, alongside sculptures worldwide, wherever an artist finds the spirit desiring.
Keystone & Switch by Jon Whitfill, Evanston, Oregon, USA 02011
In July 02011, EbM brought Lubbock, TX–based artist Jonathan Whitfill to Evanston, IL to install a sculptural diptych on two separate EbM sites. Whitfill’s medium is books, and for one site he produced Keystone, a four-foot-diameter book wheel created by cutting pages out of books to form book wedges that fit together to create a wheel. The work is installed in an unlikely place: the side of a garage in an alley off of residential Prairie Avenue. Although the work is installed at a private residence belonging to Stel and Angela Valavanis, the area at the north end (01823 Grant Street) is open to the public. The Valavanises are both book lovers and art lovers, so a sculpture that blends art and literature so beautifully was exciting to them. They installed a light and bench across from the book wheel to form a cozy, two-person park. EbM strategically commissioned Whitfill for the site in order to emphasize the relationship between the Evanston, IL and Bledsoe, TX sites. The first privately owned land on the Llano Estacado, where Bledsoe and Lubbock are located, was that of a Chicago-based architecture firm that was hired by the state of Texas to design and build the Texas State Capitol. At the time, a partner in the firm lived in Evanston, and was instrumental in foundign the community’s first library.
Whitfill’s companion piece, Switch, was installed on the rooftop deck of the Valavanis’s business, Creative Coworking, which is a community workspace in downtown Evanston that showcases local art. Switch was created with pages removed from books used in Keystone. Whitfill’s design of a railway switch sculpture is very much in harmony with the site’s history as a former boarding house for railway workers. Located at 922 Davis Street, Switch is viewable from Maple Avenue, as well as from the Davis Street Metra and Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) stations.
Cloud Vessels by Nova Jiang & Jamie O’Shea, Rio Del Oro (Belen), New Mexico, USA 02012
Cloud Vessels is a collaboration between Nova Jiang and Jamie O’Shea aimed at serving desert air water to guests from glass clouds. Desert clouds passing over the project site were photographed, and Jiang hired a local glassblower to create drinking vessels based on selected cloud forms. O’Shea constructed an experimental atmospheric water generator, powered by his inexpensive solar concentrator, the “Caloris Basin.” A series of water-tasting parties were hosted in the desert, where guests drank water distilled out of the air from glass “cloud vessels.” Cloud Vessels was a part of ISEA2012.
The Thirsty Person, Who Having Found A Spring, Rushes To Drink, Does Not Contemplate Its Beauty by Jessica Segall, Moriarty, New Mexico, USA 02012
New York–based artist Jessica Segall created a pop-up drive-in movie screen with a frozen milk surface at the EbM site along Interstate 40, part of historic Route 66. On this glacial expanse, she projected the film of the same name, The Thirsty Person, Who Having Found A Spring, Rushes To Drink, Does Not Contemplate Its Beauty, which she created as a resident artist at the Svalbard Global Seed Vault (NO). A small audience of locals and ISEA artists watched the entrancing images dance in a pitch sky; a larger audience consisting of thousands of drivers on Interstate 40 enjoyed brief excerpts. A soundtrack by composer Cheryl Leonard, who was also a resident artist at Svalbard, played on pirate radio station KEbM, 89.7 FM. Cars that were arrayed around the screen to watch the spectacle powered both the digital projector and the radio transmitter. The experience was transcendent. The Thirsty Person, Who Having Found A Spring, Rushes To Drink, Does Not Contemplate Its Beauty was a part of ISEA2012.
Horizon by Scott Oliver, Rio Del Oro, New Mexico,USA 02013
A New Horizon by Fort Bragg, CA–based artist Scott Oliver is a cast-concrete sculpture that incorporates the sand and stone of the surrounding landscape. The solid bench-height text reading “Horizon” stretches twenty-five feet north to south, providing an ideal vantage of the Rio Grande cutting its way through the desert to the west, and the Manzano Mountains to the east. A New Horizon is not only a literal expression of the surrounding visual landscape, but also aims to reclaim the word “horizon,” which was the namesake of the land-scam corporation that fostered great division among the surrounding communities that had already been dealing with long-standing land disputes. On October 19, 02013, Oliver and other guest speakers performed on the Rio Del Oro site. Speakers and performers included a geologist, a naturalist, a historian, local storytellers, a musician, and a poet.
Special thanks to EbM Cosmonauts Andrea Williams, Ven Voisey, and Matt Weaver; and the Tomé Art Gallery for their support and assistance with this project. Oliver’s project is part of another long-term art project, High Desert Test Sites (02013), which took place along the southwestern roads and highways between Joshua Tree, CA and Albuquerque, NM from October 12 to 19, 02013.
Rainbow Warrior by Travis Somerville, Moriarty, New Mexico, USA 02013
Rainbow Warrior by California-based artist Travis Somerville (in collaboration with engineer and designer Dan Dodt) is an underground structure installed outside Moriarty, NM that projects a rainbow only seen at night into the open sky. The work is a response to the history of the site’s land. Referencing the incredibly long amount of time that the Rio Grande has served as a home to human cultures, the work directly addresses the Native American prophecy and legend “Warriors of the Rainbow.” “As keepers of legends, stories, and cultural rituals,” according to Somerville, “these warriors are promised to restore purity to the Earth and justice to mankind, ending the current state of environmental destruction.” The solar-powered, self-sustaining installation uses LED panel lights. Somerville raised $26,000 for the “Rainbow Warriors Legend LED light installation New Mexico” to fund this project. Watch the successful Kickstarter video!
Situation no. 5 (18 + 3 days, ∞) by Ulla Eriksen and Morten Ernlund, Cornish, New Hampshire, USA 02018
In September, 02018, we installed Situation no. 5 (18 + 3 days, ∞) in Cornish, NH. The collaborative of Ulla Eriksen (DK) and Morten Ernlund (DK) created a lovely new work that will evolve over time there. The artwork is intended to be a space for contemplation and sharing. It is also a space for collaboration. It is intended to be changed by visitors, as well as by the artists and the forest. The forest holds knowledge. It has rhythms like us, but lives them out on infathomable scales. Today it is our collaborator.
Situation no. 5 (18 + 3 days, ∞) is a public sculpture, activated by your presence within its boundaries. It is also interactive, enlivened when you replace one or all of the triangle sails with materials of your own. Dimensions and instructions for creating the sails are available below. Download the manual. Contact caretaker@situation-no5.com for guidance if needed, and for us to post pictures on the connected instagram profile, should you desire: Situation_no5. Hashtag the world with #situation_no5.
The Distance Between Us by 16 Artists; 13 Businesses Along A Block of Willamette Street; & The People of Eugene, Eugene, Oregon, USA 02019
What If You Lived In An Artwork?
If humanity lived in an artwork, would we behave differently?
Might we consider our relationship to our planet in a different light?
What if we walked along a city street the way we walk through a museum? The Distance Between Us is an artwork exploring these questions and many more.
For one week in Eugene, Oregon, April 14-20, Willamette Street between 7th and 8th Avenues were turned into an artwork, The Distance Between Us.
Thirteen businesses along this block collaborated with sixteen artists. Each business/artist pair collaborated to create a limited edition work of art that doubled as a product of the business. The artworks were available through sales and engagement. Indeed, through each engagement with the public, the artworks resolved anew as either artworks or products.
Collectible Certificates of Authenticity were available to participants for each sale or other engagement. Each day of the show, guided docent tours of the artwork/street were available, and each evening included discussions, live music, or a pub quiz.
The Distance Between Us was a project of The City of Eugene’s Cultural Service’s BRIDGE Exhibitions, curated and made possible by Lillian Almeida.
&TRANGE by Earthbound Moon & Friends
In 02018, we launched &TRANGE, the &esite Temporary Residency And Noology Garden Eugene. As part of &TRANGE we are testing a new project entitled The Everyhuman Sculpture Garden. Our first commissions for this project were Giovanni Capozolli and Patricia Montoya Donohue. In 02018, Giovanni Capozolli, Peter Redgrave, and Alex Lukas were our resident artists. In 02019, Danny Floyd was in residence.
More artists are being sought, so watch this space for updates. Not too frequently, though.
Speculative Plein Air by Earthbound Moon & ArtCity
Since 02018, we have worked with ArtCity Eugene to activate local parks. Watch for our Speculative Plein Air easels, canvases, and paints to into a park near you after the pandemic. Help us imagine what a planetary sculpture garden might look like.
ADRIFT by Earthbound Moon & The Citizens of Eugene
In 02018 and 02019, we participated in the ArtCity Eugene downtown Studio Without Walls events with ADRIFT, a series of historical markers celebrating the past, present, and future. We hope to develop this project more, post-Covid 19.
ESP by Earthbound Moon & Friends
The basic premise of the CCTV Pinhole Camera is simple: to bear witness to the land, events, objects, art and people within its field of vision. These sited, sculptural, non-traditionally-functional cameras continuously form images, while recording and sharing nothing. They are autonomous. These devices are intended to be analogous to another human consciousness—while it is possible to imagine what these cameras see, their imagery is inaccessible and it becomes necessary to accept these devices as fellow observers. And although each camera is an independent device, they will be placed at every Earthbound Moon installation site as a conceptually integrated project, the Earthbound Moon Pinhole Camera CCTV System. They provide the ever-seeing eye as protection (that many inform us we should have on our sites), while protecting the privacy and autonomy we feel is at the heart of the sites.
In 02017, we launched ESP, a program to continually engage our permanent sites with new artworks – transitory, social, conceptual, minuscule, and Earthworks. Charlie Schneider, Nicole Seisler, and Joseph Cruz are the first commissioned artists for ESP. In September, we installed the first of Charlie’s Pinhole Camera CCTV Security System on on our Moffat, CO site (above). We also collected Hand Pressed Souvenirs for Nicole’s Hand Pressed Souvenir Project (below).
On the same adventure, we worked with Adams State University on their Mars Habitat project funded by the Colorado Space Grant Consortium, funded by NASA! That was astoundingly fun. We worked with the undergraduate sculpture class to create an interactive communication tower (below). This was the first prototype of an ongoing Communication Tower project, we hope.
RIME by Earthbound Moon & Friends
In 02016, we launched RIME, a traveling exhibit exchange program for cultural institutions of all sizes (above). Our initial participants are the Russian River Historical Society; West Chicago City Museum; Main Street Museum in White River Junction, VT; No Show Museum in Zurich, Switzerland; and Museo dell’Informatica Funzionante in Palozzolo Acreide, Sicily, Italy.
Also in 02016, we had a solo show of the EbM archives: the archive of the past, the archive of the present, the archive of the future, and the archive of failure. Big thanks to TTU Landmark Arts (above) and Ballroom Projects (below) for their faith and support.
EbR EbS EbT Fourth Plinth 02021 & 02022 TDBUII/III
© 02020 — Built on Spaceship Earth