Perplexing “Yucca Crater” Will Be a Deep Desert Pool Using Repurposed Materials

Following in the footsteps of the Land Art movement of the 1970s, design studio <a href="http://www.ball-nogues.com/" target="_blank">Ball Nogues</a> has designed this cyclonic <a href="http://inhabitat.com/los-angeles-black-hole/" target="_blank">public art piece</a> to intervene upon the vast landscape of the Mojave <a href="http://inhabitat.com/study-finds-that-climate-change-may-cause-wars/" target="_blank">Desert</a>. Invited by High Desert Test Sites, the <em>Yucca Crater</em> will be a cool oasis-like pool near Joshua Tree Park made by reconfiguring the giant mold used to construct Ball Nogues' <em>Talus Dome</em>.

<a href="http://inhabitat.com/young-architects-program-ps1/" target="_blank">Ball Nogues</a>’ project, <em>Talus Dome</em>, is a carefully constructed “pile” of stainless steel spheres, on the side of a freeway in Edmonton, Alberta.

To create the shape, and elaborate mold was engineered from wood. Using this formwork, Ball Nogues conceived of <em>Yucca Crater</em>, turning it 180 degrees, with the peak now as the bottom. The project will evoke land art, but give it a modern twist- being constructed entirely from man made (and <a href="http://inhabitat.com/1000-surfboard-graveyard/" target="_blank">recycled</a>) materials. The 24 foot tall crater will dominate the flat desert plane. Inside, sits an oasis pool, filled 8 feet deep.

Visitors of the desert can take a refreshing dip, by using rock climbing holds to get into the crater. The pool is heated with <a href="http://inhabitat.com/massive-550-megawatt-riverside-solar-project-to-be-built-in-the-californian-desert/" target="_blank">solar power</a>, and continuously pumped through a wind powered turbine.

Repurposing <em>Talus Dom</em>e’s formwork challenged Ball Nogues’ idea of conceptual work, creating an entirely opposite piece from the original, which was a solid mass set into a cold and <a href="http://inhabitat.com/poop-news-arizona-ski-resort-to-make-snow-from-human-effluent/" target="_blank">snowy climate</a>.

The project addresses the issues of recycling, eliminating waste, and draws attention to our impact on the environment- even in art.

Land art became popular in the 1970s, with such famous works as Robert Smithson’s <em><a href="http://inhabitat.com/the-land-art-generator-initiative-combines-art-with-energy-creation/" target="_blank">Spiral Jetty</a></em>, a sculptural coil extending in Utah’s Great Salt Lake, and <em><a href="http://www.diaart.org/sites/main/lightningfield" target="_blank">Lightning Field</a></em> by Walter de Maria, a field in New Mexico with steel rods that attract lightning, creating a beautiful light show. Both are still in existence. Ball Nogues takes inspiration from these great works, adding the element of modernity by addressing current <a href="http://inhabitat.com/tour-vegetale-de-nantes-is-a-spectacular-tower-stacked-high-with-trees/" target="_blank">environmental </a>issues with their pieces.