File:Charles Ross StarAxis.jpg

Image of Charles Ross earthwork, Star Axis, entrance to the Star Tunnel (1971– ). The image illustrates a key work by Charles Ross, his earthwork, Star Axis, an architectonic sculpture and naked-eye observatory in eastern New Mexico. The work features five architectural "chambers" and several apertures that frame various earth-to-star alignments and reveal a human scale within enormous celestial cycles. Among them is the central "Star Tunnel", whose entrance is pictured. The Star Tunnel is a 147-step stairway parallel to Earth’s axis, that enables visitors to experience all of the circumpolar orbits of the north star, Polaris, throughout the 26,000-year cycle of axial precession. This work has been discussed in major art journals and daily press publications.

Artist Charles Ross. Copyright held by the artist.

Charles Ross (artist)

Earthwork image, detail

Yes

The image serves an informational and educational purpose as the primary means of illustrating a key work in the career of Charles Ross: his more-than-forty-year, ongoing earthwork, Star Axis, an architectonic sculpture and naked-eye observatory situated on the eastern plains of New Mexico. The sculpture and its views are carefully constructed to align with astronomical phenomena such as the vernal equinox sunrise, echoing ancient structures that are also aligned to the sun and stars. It is roughly eleven stories high, one-tenth mile across, composed mainly of granite and sandstone, and comprises five architectural "chambers." Critics have described the work as a summary of Ross's lifelong pursuit of the dynamics of human interaction with light and the cosmos. Because the article is about an artist and his work, the omission of the image would significantly limit a reader's understanding and ability to understand this key, longstanding body of work, which brought Ross ongoing recognition through locations and coverage by major critics and publications. This work is discussed in the article and by critics cited in the article.

There is no free equivalent of this or any other of this series by Charles Ross, so the image cannot be replaced by a free image.

The image will not affect the value of the original work or limit the copyright holder's rights or ability to distribute the original due to its low resolution and the general workings of the art market, which values the actual work of art. Because of the low resolution, illegal copies could not be made.

Image of Charles Ross earthwork, Star Axis, entrance to the Star Tunnel (1971– ). The image illustrates a key work by Charles Ross, his earthwork, Star Axis, an architectonic sculpture and naked-eye observatory in eastern New Mexico. The work features five architectural "chambers" and several apertures that frame various earth-to-star alignments and reveal a human scale within enormous celestial cycles. Among them is the central "Star Tunnel", whose entrance is pictured. The Star Tunnel is a 147-step stairway parallel to Earth’s axis, that enables visitors to experience all of the circumpolar orbits of the north star, Polaris, throughout the 26,000-year cycle of axial precession. The Star Tunnel is entered through an enormous excavation of two (pictutred) 30-foot-tall, curved sandstone walls rising up to an elliptical opening that traces the path Earth's axis draws throughout precession. When a viewer enters the Star Tunnel at bottom, the oculus at the top appears to be the size of a dime held at arm’s length and frames the smallest, nearest orbit of Polaris corresponding roughly to the view in the year 2100 CE. This work has been discussed in major art journals and daily press publications.

Artist Charles Ross. Copyright held by the artist.

Star Axis

Earthwork image, detail

Yes

The image serves an informational and educational purpose as the primary means of illustrating a major elements of a key work by Charles Ross: the entrance to the Star Tunnel of his more-than-forty-year, ongoing earthwork, Star Axis, an architectonic sculpture and naked-eye observatory situated on the eastern plains of New Mexico. The sculpture and its views are carefully constructed to align with astronomical phenomena such as the vernal equinox sunrise, echoing ancient structures that are also aligned to the sun and stars. It is roughly eleven stories high, one-tenth mile across, composed mainly of granite and sandstone, and comprises five architectural "chambers." Critics have described the work as regards as a summary of Ross's lifelong pursuit of the dynamics of human interaction with light and the cosmos. Because the article is about an artist and his work, the omission of the image would significantly limit a reader's understanding and ability to understand this key, longstanding body of work, which brought Ross ongoing recognition through locations and coverage by major critics and publications. This work is discussed in the article and by critics cited in the article.

There is no free equivalent of this or any other of this series by Charles Ross, so the image cannot be replaced by a free image.

The image will not affect the value of the original work or limit the copyright holder's rights or ability to distribute the original due to its low resolution and the general workings of the art market, which values the actual work of art. Because of the low resolution, illegal copies could not be made.

Image of Charles Ross earthwork, Star Axis, entrance to the Star Tunnel (1971– ). The image illustrates a key land art work by American sculptor Charles Ross, Star Axis, an architectonic sculpture and naked-eye observatory in eastern New Mexico. The work features five architectural "chambers" and several apertures that frame various earth-to-star alignments and reveal a human scale within enormous celestial cycles. Among them is the central "Star Tunnel", whose entrance is pictured. The Star Tunnel is a 147-step stairway parallel to Earth’s axis, that enables visitors to experience all of the circumpolar orbits of the north star, Polaris, throughout the 26,000-year cycle of axial precession. This work has been discussedwidely in major art journals and daily press publications.

Artist Charles Ross. Copyright held by the artist.

Land art

Earthwork image, detail

Yes

The image serves an informational and educational purpose as the primary means of illustrating a key land art work by American sculptor Charles Ross: his more-than-forty-year, ongoing earthwork, Star Axis, an architectonic sculpture and naked-eye observatory situated on the eastern plains of New Mexico. The sculpture and its views are carefully constructed to align with astronomical phenomena such as the vernal equinox sunrise, echoing ancient structures that are also aligned to the sun and stars. It is roughly eleven stories high, one-tenth mile across, composed mainly of granite and sandstone, and comprises five architectural "chambers." Critics have described the work as a defining example of land art and a summary of Ross's lifelong pursuit of the dynamics of human interaction with light and the cosmos. Because the article is about a rare and very specific type of work, the omission of the image would limit a reader's understanding and ability to understand the full range of such work. Star Axis is discussed in the article and by critics cited in the article.

There is no free equivalent of this or any other of this series by Charles Ross, so the image cannot be replaced by a free image.

The image will not affect the value of the original work or limit the copyright holder's rights or ability to distribute the original due to its low resolution and the general workings of the art market, which values the actual work of art. Because of the low resolution, illegal copies could not be made.