City of San Marcos brings immersive art to downtown Square

The public is invited to view an immersive, illuminated artwork honoring the San Marcos River and the solar eclipse. The project, named Alignmentality, will be projected on the columns and facade of the Hays County Historic Courthouse, 111 E. San Antonio on Saturday, April 6 and Sunday, April 7.

Alignmentality is collaboration between three local artists: virtual reality artist Topher Sipes, multi-media painter Alicia Philley, and projection artist Jasna Boudard. Together, the artists created a watery, abstract animation using vivid colors from five of Philley’s paintings. The artwork was commissioned by the San Marcos Arts Commission. The time-based piece coincides with the total solar eclipse, which will occur in the San Marcos area Monday, April 8.

“This is a really unique moment, with so many people planning to gather for the eclipse, a nature- based event that will only last a few minutes,” said Philley. “Our artwork is about the warping of time during emotionally heightened experiences and the possibility of feeling universally connected.”

Each cycle of the animation lasts 24 minutes.

Philley works out of the San Marcos-based Mothership studios and her nature-based art includes themes such as reflective light on water and the wave-like motion of prairie grasses. Her sculptural work was on view as a site-specific installation at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center for seven months. She is a lead organizer for this year’s San Marcos Studio Tours and the fall artist in residence at the Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve.

Sipes has created artworks commissioned by the city of San Marcos, including murals on the Cheatham St. bridge and the Rogers Family Tourism Award inspired by his illustrations for the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment. He’s also performed using virtual reality for clients such as the Houston Symphony and is former Vice President of the San Marcos Area Arts Council.

Boudard creates immersive visual experiences using photography and video art to explore movement, light, and connection. She works intuitively by recording lived moments and translating them into 'dream-like' reality, often through projection art. She has exhibited her work all over the world and is beginning her journey as the Thinkery museum's first resident artist.

The artwork will run for five cycles between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. each evening. The video will be projected on the three-story columns on the south side of the downtown square. A complementary projection installation will also be available April 5-7 at Mothership Studios, 20027 San Marcos Highway 80, as part of the San Marcos Studio Tour.