"My concept was to invert the traditional notion of outdoor sculpture by addressing all of the active walkways of the park rather than setting down a sculptural element in the park’s center.”
—Teresita Fernández
The present print is related to an installation Fernández developed for New York’s Madison Square Park, 500 running feet of golden, mirror-polished discs that create canopies above the pathways around the park’s central Oval Lawn. In nature, a fata morgana is a mirage that form across the horizon line, an atmospheric refraction that makes objects look as though they are hovering in the sky. Alluding to this phenomenon, Fernández’s project introduced a shimmering horizontal element that engaged visitors in a dynamic experience, the installation hoovering above the winding walkways to define a luminous experiential passage for visitors. The metal forms, perforated with intricate patterns reminiscent of foliage, created abstract flickering effects as sunlight filtered through the canopy, casting a glow across the expanse of the work, paths, and passersby. As Fernández herself described of the work’s impact in the space, “by hovering over the park in a horizontal band, Fata Morgana becomes a ghostlike, sculptural, luminous mirage that both distorts the landscape and radiates golden light." Fata Morgana Print Series shows the view of a visitor looking up at the installation from the pathway, the blue sky peeking through the reflective form.
