The official “Call for Artist” has gone out! We want your art to fill our plexiglass boxes! Here’s the official release, please forward to anyone you think might be interested.

We are now accepting proposals for all 27 Timescale chapter columns!

Timescale is a journey through 4.57 billion years of planet Earth’s geological and biological evolution, extended across one mile (5280 feet) of open playa. Beginning with the formation of the Earth from a cloud of gas and dust, participants will traverse through time — advancing two million years with each footstep, culminating at the present day.

Twenty-seven chapters in Earth’s growth are highlighted along the way, allowing participants to appreciate the transformation of our planet and the exponential complexity of living things. Each chapter will be marked by an 8-inch square column rising from the playa surface. The 6.5-foot tall column holds a clear box that contains a sculptural representation pertaining to that period of time.

We are actively looking for artists to create column sculptures. Pieces should evoke an event, creature or other aspect of the chosen chapter’s unique story. We will provide a well-lit clear display box eight inches wide and deep, and twelve inches tall. Electricity will be available for your installation if coordinated in advance.

For more information about this Burning Man art project check out the following links:
* Timebook – a list of the chapters and brief descriptions
* Artist’s FAQ
* Proposal Submission Form

Ardent Heavy Industries is thrilled to announce that Timescale will be a funded Burning Man honorarium art installation for the 2009 event! What began as a geeky geology idea more than five years ago can now become a reality: a mile long art gallery, inspiring participants to learn more about the history and evolution of our planet Earth.

We didn’t chose to create theme art, it’s more like the theme chose us. The idea for a scaled representation of geologic time was already rolling around in our conceptual project queue, and 2009 seemed like the perfect year to translate the idea into reality. When we heard that this year’s theme would be Evolution, we had no choice but to make Timescale happen.

The entire Ardent crew is gearing up for a busy spring and summer. We’re cleaning and organizing our new shop, testing various concrete mix designs, and spending hours upon hours drawing things up in CAD and choosing just the right components to use in assembling the Timescale columns. We will be putting out the official call for column artists in the next few days, so stay tuned.

Once again, a HUGE HUZZAH to the Burning Man organization for choosing to fund our project, thereby allowing us the resources to spread our geeky joy over a mile long line in the desert!

Timescale has a Twitter account! Follow us!

Timescale is a new project from Ardent Heavy Industries, the not-fire-centric parent group to Interpretive Arson. Timescale is a journey through 4.57 billion years of planet Earth’s geological and biological evolution, extended across one mile (5280 feet) of open playa. Beginning with the formation of the Earth from a cloud of gas and dust, participants will traverse through time — advancing two million years with each footstep, culminating at the present day. Each chapter in Earth’s growth is highlighted along the way, allowing participants to appreciate the transformation of our planet and the exponential complexity of living things. Each chapter in Earth’s history will be a 6.5ft tall 8in x 8in column of concrete with art representative of that chapter inside.

A hard copy of the proposal for Timescale was recently submitted to the BMORG for funding. The hard copy, in this case, consisted of a 12″ concrete cube, hollow down the center, with a 52.8 ft long rop inside, marked out at 1/100 scale of the final project. The cube was finished top and bottom with mild steel plates, with the printed/bound proposal mounted atop the top plate under a piece of clear 1/4″ acrylic. The whole shebang was held in a lovely rope sling with wooden handles.