Note on 4 Sacred Spaces

When I was a child, I was told that four sacred mountains define the border of my people's traditional homeland and that its geography is infused with significance - a mountain chain near my family’s homestead is the solidified voice of a deity or that the lava bed down the road is actually the coagulated blood of a slain giant. The landscape provides a context of identity and meaning for the Dineh or Navajo people who still live within its boundaries.

I am interested in how myths are intrinsically tied to landscape and how the significance of a specific geography decreases with the increased mobility of populations. Recently, I’ve been exploring how new sites can become imbued with significance within contemporary urban environments. Four Sacred Spaces is an exploration of this potential.