Articles
- Digital TwinsA "digital twin," a detailed 3D model of Notre Dame became the blueprint for rebuilding the gothic cathedral after the devastating 2019 fire. In 2010 the late Andrew Tallon set out to make a 3D scan of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris. His purpose was pure research, a way to look at the construction and planning of the gothic masterpiece. The craftsmen left no record of why they made decisions about construction, no records of technique, no firsthand accounts. In interviews Tallon said that looking at the details of construction was like looking into the mind of the builders. The best way to take in those details as a whole was to build the cathedral digitally. He used state of the art 3D scanners to collect billions of datapoints. Tallon built a digital twin of the Cathedral. LUX has an excellent post about this (here). And a podcast for those...Read more
- Rock Art: What are Pictographs, Petroglyphs, and Geoglyphs?Rock Art: Pictographs, Petroglyphs, and Geoglyphs. Three techniques are used by the world's first artists. What do those terms mean and what does the art look like?Read more
- Old River Bed Delta Footprints, Utah12,000 years ago someone walked through a stream in Utah. What do the footprints they left behind tell us?Read more
- Education through Rock Art: an Experience in EmpathyOne of the significant challenges in education today is engaging children with opportunities to think critically and to creatively express their ideas. Piloted in Tennessee and Oklahoma, our first rock art activity hit the mark. Kids discovered how symbols can convey multifaceted meanings, capturing events and knowledge, cultural beliefs and stories, and individual self-expression. They reflected on their own identifies and stories, comparing themselves with those original artists, then created unique artwork that demonstrated their understanding of the purpose and power of iconography today. On top of that, they had fun! Over a year has passed, and they’re still talking about their experiences. This kind of lasting impact is precisely what we aim to achieve in education—lessons that inspire new perspectives, a deeper understanding of the world, and greater self-awareness. To build on this success, we’re moving forward with the process of developing four additional activities, each designed to be...Read more
- Jackson Hole Talk September 4thJoin us Sept 4th, 2024 5:30 PM MDT Altamira Fine Arts Gallery in Jackson WYRead more
- Paleolithic paintings in Cresswell Craigs, UKhttps://youtu.be/6njVt5X4WWo Creswell Crags, Nottinghamshire is one of the most important Upper Paleolithic sites in the British Isles and has been the focus for archaeologists for over 170 years. In 2021, Research Fellow, Dr George Nash at the University of Liverpool explored the walls and ceilings of several caves within the Gorge, including Church Hole Cave and Robin Hood’s Cave. The results of this survey revealed several panels in Church Hole Cave that showed potential evidence of painted surfaces using a locally sourced red pigment. Read about his findings at the Bradshaw Foundation website (here).Read more
- Storied Rock InterviewOur founder Stephen Alvarez was interviewed on public radio about producing the Storied Rock article in National Geographic Magazine and the work of the Ancient Art Archive. Listen to the interview here. Storied Rock is live on National Geographic's website (here subscription required). You can see the images on Alvarez's website by going to America's Murals.Read more
- National Geographic Storytellers Summit 2024It was an honor to present my work on the Mural of America at the National Geographic Storytellers Summit in Los Angeles in February. It was an inspiring 2 daysRead more
- Rochester Creek Petroglyph Site VideoThe Rochester Creek Rock Art Site is an extraordinary Fremont site in Emery County, Utah. With a story telling team of Native American descendants, land managers and archaeologists we have put together this 3 minute film that imagines the site from the point of view of Ute spiritual leader Larry Cesspooch.Read more
- Ancient Art Archive WikipediaThe Archive showed up on Wikipedia this week (here)! Wikipedia is the crowd sourced encyclopedia, its often the first place people go for information on any subject. We are thrilled to be added.Read more
- National Geographic SummitDustin Mater and I were invited to the National Geographic Storytellers Summit in LA. The Summit is a gathering of National Geographic grantees who come together annually for a few days of inspiration and presentationsRead more
- Patagonia Cave Art: A Pictograph Seen Across 3000 YearsA new paper in Science Advances suggests that a single pictograph motif persists across 130 human generations at a site in ArgentinaRead more
- Nevada man sentenced to 6 months in prison for damaging rock artA Nevada man will spend 6 month in jail for defacing rock art in NevadaRead more