ABSTRACT

Sanchez's urban labyrinths explore the experience of getting lost on well-trodden paths in a warren of ancient streets, of being hemmed in as the narrow streets of an old European town close in on the viewer. He explores these architectural canyons by seeking out the sky from the bottom of these man-made cliffs, which have over countless years been reshaped by rain and wind, winter frost and summer drought, as slowly and surely as these forces work in nature. Rising water levels may be new to the world with some often-referenced exceptions such as Venice and the Maldives. For now, this reality is the subject of panicked projections across the world. Sanchez's work poetically engages this indirectly. The idea of an azure river and yellow sandstone cliffs becomes less alluring, when contrasted with grimier facades and people's sky rivers appearing to be polluted by inconsistent color in the water.