NAJMA RETURNS (GUARDIAN OF THE EARTH), 2023

pigment, synthetic composite resin, decomposed granite⁠
72 x 24 x 138 inches⁠

Curated by Leigh Arnold

Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas

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NAJMA Returns (Guardian of the Earth) recalls a 2021 performance by Albuquerque at the Giza Plateau. During the performance, Albuquerque dressed as NAJMA, the 25th century astronaut, walks across the sand before falling to her knees in reverential grief.

 

The work sits at the intersection of Albuquerque's multidisciplinary practice moving between performance, land art, sculpture, painting, and story telling. The blue figure emerges from the Earth and becomes a mark in the land that connects Earth and Sky. On her back are the 33 solar disks that correlate to the 33 vertebrae in our spine. 

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Photography by Kevin Todora