inSITE

Location: ComPeung, Chiang Mai, Thailand

Installation inSITE is an experimental in situ sculpture created by the removal of soil from a plot of land with dimensions of 53ft by 13ft. In this piece, two pathways descend into the earth where they converge at the center. At this point of convergence, two seats carved from earth face each other. This land intervention is an attempt to embody moments of time in one’s life journey.

One pathway springs from a pre-existing road. This main pathway into inSITE has two trees on either side, forming a natural gate. The opposite pathway leads out of the earth and continues along at ground level, until it is abruptly cut off by a barbed-wire boundary and we are confronted with a view of inaccessible wilderness beyond. Although this pathway can be used as an access point, it contrasts the main entrance as it is not a thoroughfare and as an exit point from inSITE, it is essentially a dead end.

These two pathways are parallel, yet misaligned. Cutting into the ground in the form of stairways, they meet at the deepest section at the center. This intersection is a transitional point and pivotal site for engagement. When sitting within this space, the threshold where the underworld meets the world above is directly visible at eye level. This node highlights the experience of being inside the earth and is intended for introspection. When two people are seated within, they are face to face. For both viewers, one pathway is always visible when looking to the right; the opposite pathway is hidden from their seated point of view when looking left. This arrangement creates a shared experience for these two people– of mirrored, yet ultimately offset, perspectives.