Remembering Paolo Soleri

Detail at Cosanti in Paradise Valley

Last week I was in Flagstaff for a retrospective of Paolo Soleri’s work at Northern Arizona University (“Paolo Soleri: Think. Draw. Build. Sustain,” through April 13). I was moved by Soleri’s beautiful renderings and unusual ideas. Among his models and drawings were a number of bridges, which seemed to be a particular fascination for this visionary architect whose work spanned multiple disciplines. Yesterday, I was sad to learn that he had crossed another bridge, dying at the age of 93 at his home in Paradise Valley, AZ.

Born in 1919 in Turin, Italy, Paolo Soleri continued his architectural studies in the U.S. with Frank Lloyd Wright at Taliesin and Taliesin West. He settled permanently in Arizona in 1956, establishing a home and studio in Paradise Valley, which he named Cosanti, a coined word from the Italian for “against things,” referring to the materialism and commercialism that so often keep us out of harmony with nature. That theme was apparent in the work chosen for NAU’s exhibition, combining organic forms, bold color, and equally bold ideas about how we can find more sustainable ways to live on earth.

Most mornings, I begin by checking in with one of my favorite blogs, Grist. In contrast to typically alarmist news about how we have become disconnected from our environment, Grist often highlights inspiring stories about people who are innovating ways to live in harmony with the planet. Decades ago, Paolo Soleri did that, recognizing that we could turn our backs on materialism to embrace nature’s grand scale and organic forms while still satisfying the human need for beauty and order.

Soleri may not have been the first to imagine this holistic approach (his work has echoes of ancient archaeology and Leonardo da Vinci, as well as Frank Lloyd Wright), but he was unafraid of risk, experimentation, and rejection. He also coined the word arcology, combining ecology and architecture, to promote a very different human interaction with earthly spaces. Think of it: Most of our homes are variations on boxes, and this was a man who truly saw outside the box.

Many of Soleri’s designs remain dreams, never achieving public support or funding. Among his realized works in Arizona we have Cosanti and Arcosanti (his experimental urban community, about 5 percent complete). Both are places where we can stand inside this man’s vision and be embraced by his sensibilities for architecture, nature, and even music, art, mathematics, and history. And a few years back, one of his many bridge designs was completed, essentially a giant solar calendar crossing the Arizona Canal in Scottsdale. On April 20, a movie about Soleri will be screened at the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art as part of Modern Phoenix Week.

Paolo Soleri was ahead of his time, but I have a feeling that the rest of us will catch up and catch on, and that one day I’ll be reading Grist to learn that someone has picked up a Soleri concept and adapted it to real-world conditions. A few decades ago, his ideas may have looked like something out of a science fiction film. Someday, Paolo Soleri’s vision could be the view outside our front doors.

Happy Birthday, Grand Canyon National Park!

Grand Canyon National Park visitors watch a winter sunrise.

On February 26, 1919—94 years ago today—President Woodrow Wilson signed the proclamation that created Grand Canyon National Park. Of course, the canyon itself is a bit older than that, and the park has expanded its boundaries to encompass 1,218,375 acres.

The Grand Canyon region first gained protection as a forest reserve in 1893. President Theodore Roosevelt, who made many visits to the canyon and described it as the one sight that every American should see, granted it national monument status in 1908.

Protecting this awe-inspiring landscape containing forest, desert, and riparian ecosystems seems like an obvious move today, but the senate bill that set aside Grand Canyon National Park in 1919 was hard-fought, and its signing didn’t assure the canyon’s future. Many battles were yet to come over proposed dams, uranium mining, air quality, airplane noise, etc. Even today, nearly a century later, the possibility of renewed mining activities threatens the quality of experiences for future visitors.

As GCNP celebrates its 94th birthday, let’s take a moment to appreciate the canyon as a national treasure, something rare and special that will be there to inspire generations after ours. In the words of Alan Gussow (1931-1997), artist and conservationist:

“There is a great deal of talk these days about saving the environment. We must, for the environment sustains our bodies. But as humans we also require support for our spirits, and this is what certain kinds of places provide.”

Mapping Sedona

A map can be a key to adventure.

I'm delighted! A couple days ago, I learned that Rio Nuevo Publishers released the Sedona Map and Guide, a project that I worked on throughout 2012. This feels a little like sending a child off to college, then realizing when they come home for a visit that they've grown into someone remarkable. In a sense, I’ve worked on this project the entire 25 years I’ve lived in Arizona, collecting experiences and memories, seasons and stories. 

I realize that a number of people today think that maps will go the way of dinosaurs, thanks to GPS technology. But I love maps the same way I love books, as ink-on-paper talismans that hold potential riches of story and adventure. Of course, no piece of paper can truly represent the fullness of being in the landscape, but I think we came close with this project.

The main talent behind this map is Bronze Black, a Flagstaff designer/illustrator and river guide who produced a similar project, his Grand Canyon Superguide. In addition to trail information, Bronze incorporated my text and dazzling photography from Larry Lindahl, George H. H. Huey, and others, photographers whose work has been featured on the pages of Arizona Highways magazine. Dave Jenney, Caroline Cook, and the supremely talented folks at Rio Nuevo Publishers shepherded the map through the final stages, making sure it was not only accurate and useful but also an object of beauty.

I’d like to think that our enthusiasm for getting to know Sedona via mountain biking (in Bronze’s case) and hiking (my case) shines through. We wanted to convey Red Rock Country as an experience—not merely a beautiful landscape to admire from afar, but as a place of hidden canyons, fascinating history, wildflowers and wildlife, and awe-inspiring geology—all accessible and waiting to be explored.

Even if a two-dimensional rectangle of paper can’t hold the entire spectrum of Sedona, I hope this map will become a key for people to unlock their own experiences.

One thing leads to another...

Sedona's winter sunsets are glorious.

As autumn blew into winter, and winter is now shifting—ever so skittishly—toward spring, I’ve been thinking a lot about transitions. Something about a season’s changing always leaves me feeling a bit unsatisfied, usually because I haven’t traveled, hiked, written, or lived as much as I’d hoped to during that particular time period. It feels like loose ends or unfinished business.

Similarly, transitions are important in writing, getting smoothly from one sentence or paragraph or chapter to the next. When I don’t take the time to add missing transitions as I’m polishing a piece, it feels unfinished and choppy. Transitioning from one idea to the next may be as simple as adding a single word to show relationship: “Now.” “Next.” “Then.” A complex idea might require a phrase or sentence to summarize before the writing continues.

But sometimes that transition or lead-in may be as subtle as echoing structure, sound, or rhythm. Techniques like alliteration (repeating a sound) are usually associated with children’s stories, poetry, and songwriting, but they can be effective in prose if they aren’t overdone. And deliberately amusing when they are: One of my favorite books, Nancy E. Shaw’s delightful Sheep Take a Hike, makes me smile every time I think about it. The language of the story pulls the reader along as much as the tale itself does. 

Language is a rich medium that offers endless possibilities beyond mere communication. Adding transitions, especially in casual writing like an email message or a blog post, may seem like a detail that’s unnecessarily time-consuming. Or maybe even a little condescending, like scattering breadcrumbs along a trail where the destination is clearly in sight. But transitions make the journey easier and sometimes even fun.

Now, if only winter would take the hint….

Visit Grand Canyon fee free today

Grand Canyon visitors enjoy a South Rim sunset.

Today Grand Canyon National Park is celebrating Martin Luther King Day with FREE admission. MLK Day marks the first of several fee-free dates in 2013, including April 22-26 (National Park Week), August 25 (National Park Service’s birthday), September 28 (National Public Lands Day), and November 9-11 (Veterans Day weekend). Though most national parks, forests, and wildlife refuges don’t charge entry fees, Grand Canyon’s $25/vehicle entry fee is among the highest, making the park’s annual fee-free dates a good time to plan a trip.

Especially for families or budget travelers, fee-free days offer an opportunity to participate in what Wallace Stegner called “the best idea we ever had. Absolutely American, absolutely democratic.” The establishment of the National Park Service in 1916 meant we could set aside tracts of land and historic treasures for future generations to enjoy, and today, almost every community in the U.S. can boast a nearby preserve. In Arizona alone, we count 18 national parks and monuments, 6 national forests, and another half-dozen or so national historic sites, recreation areas, and wildlife refuges.

Whether it’s a walk in the woods or that time-honored American tradition, the family road trip, it’s crucially important to take time out for nature. Today, when our dazzling modern inventions take us farther from the natural world, that’s more true than ever. (Ever read The Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv? It’s a stunning examination of how “nature-deficit disorder” impacts mental and emotional development.) And, speaking as someone whose work involves sitting at a desk for long stretches, exploring nature is the best way to get up and get moving.

Showing up for fee-free days is also a way of participating in the democratic process. I could rant about how starving our parks of public funding is a blatant attempt at promoting privatization, but I’ll resist. And I could add that creeping privatization leads to higher entry fees, which in turn leads to an elitist system, but I’ll resist that as well. (I could also point out that those who protest fees are grabbing the wrong end of the stick … but who can blame them for taking that route, considering the current Congressional climate?)

So instead I will encourage everyone to vote with their feet and beat a trail to the nearest park to enjoy our national heritage!

Winter in Sedona

A storm breaks after leaving snow on Sedona's Capitol Butte.

During winter, the natural world seems to sleep. In Sedona, however, the winter months seem more like a magician’s spell. Autumn’s high tourist season is long past, and holiday visitors are gone. It’s this quiet, spellbound time that many of the town’s residents cherish as a chance to rest and reconnect with the attractions that inspired them to move here.

For visitors, this “off season” is a good time to rub elbows with locals and experience the natural world as it re-gathers energy for spring. And while the human social calendar is a bit thinner in January and February, Mother Nature continues to put on a show. Occasionally, snow dusts the tops of the red rocks, and sometimes a storm will blanket the forest floor, making it easier to see who’s been wandering the winter wonderland.

Tiny cloven prints a few inches apart belong to collared peccaries. Better known as javelinas, they forage in neighborhoods during winter months, parents and older sibs protecting the younger ones. Javelinas can reproduce year-round, and though most babies are born to coincide with the summer monsoon, two tiny brown-and-pink “piglets” showed up in my neighborhood in December. The precocious piggies trot along with the rest of the family band shortly after birth. Another morning, I watched nine mule deer cross the street and head into the forest, and last week a bobcat paused in the driveway. The ground is still damp from the last snowstorm, and trails boast a mosaic of prints.

Though days are short, the low angle of the sun sends rays deep into the alcoves where the prehistoric Sinagua Indians built their pueblos, and hikers may be surprised by the warmth of these original “passive solar homes.” In late afternoon, the setting sun burnishes Sedona’s red rocks, an especially dazzling sight if a breaking storm has topped the high peaks with snow, creating a contrast of light and dark, ice and fire. Nights are long and cold, but the air is crisp, and stars sparkle brilliantly.

By the end of January, nature is already beginning to stir. Manzanita and sugar bush show pink blossoms and buds in sunny locations, and green shoots mark future wildflowers. Sedona’s trails, always inviting, are lightly visited this time of year. Most of Arizona’s winter visitors tend to stick around the Sonoran Desert, where car auctions, the Phoenix Open golf tournament, and Scottsdale’s horse shows offer plenty of entertainment, and temperatures are a warm respite from harsher climates.

Sometimes, there’s a good reason to avoid visiting a popular location during the off-season, such as seasonal closures or unfriendly weather. But while Sedona’s winter weather is 10 to 20 degrees colder than the lower Sonoran Desert, it’s still relatively mild year round. Winter visitors to Red Rock Country will find Groupons or discounts on hotels and spa services, two-for-one restaurant specials, daytime highs around 50, and perhaps a dusting of snow.

In February the social calendar begins to pick up once more. The Sedona Marathon gets things moving on February 2, 2013, and five days later, Sedona’s first-ever yoga festival opens. By the end of the month, when the red carpet rolls out for the Sedona International Film Festival, daffodils and fruit trees are starting to blossom, and the town is already gearing up for spring break crowds.

Until then, Sedona rests quietly under winter’s spell….

Grand Canyon Mystery

Congratulations, Grand Canyon--old as the ages and still stirring up controversy and intrigue! I read this article in the New York Times today with great interest, not just because it’s about one of my favorite places, but also because it reminds me of one of my favorite quotes: 

“The fairest thing we can experience is the mysterious” —Albert Einstein

Taking pleasure in reading about scientists' continuing disagreement on Grand Canyon's geologic age isn't to say I don’t appreciate advances in science or that I don’t make the effort to research the name of a plant or the origin and age of a pottery sherd. But there’s something about the unknowable that holds magic: When we can put a label on a thing or explain it thoroughly, it loses a bit of its wildness.

But no matter if science determines whether Grand Canyon is old or young (geologically speaking), it will always be grand enough to hold many mysteries.

And after all, isn't it mystery that beckons us onward, inspiring us to travel, to write, to paint, to understand?