Inspiration Series

Arizona in springtime is fresh and lovely. It is warm, but not too hot. I was on my way to the Grand Canyon and then back to California, when I stumbled across these two contrasting buildings.

The Sinagua people (after Sierra Sin Agua, an early Spanish name for the San Francisco Peaks region) built and lived in an impressive apartment building, set into a nook in the cliff face above the Beaver Creek, 1100-1425. The creek provided water for farming, and the community thrived. Lower down the cliff, closer to the water, are foundations for an even larger building. The overhang above has protected the buildings over the past 600 years, showing how well they were built. The stone forms, with a rough render, appear to grow out of the cliff face. This is one of the last Sinagua communities, and eventually the people moved on, and today several Hopi clans and Yavapai communities trace their histories to this region.

Further south, amongst the red rocks of Sedona is the Chapel of the Holy Cross, 1956-57. Marguerite Brunswig Staude, a local sculptor, had the inspiration for a chapel with a strong cross form while watching the construction of the Empire State Building in the 1930s. The building was eventually designed, by Anshen and Allen, with a rough aggregate concrete finish. The chapel appears large up close, especially looking up from the walkway leading up from the carpark. rom across the valley the red rocks dwarf the building into insignificance.

Photos taken by the Author on 13 and 20 April 2008.