Mirage (130 miles NE Las Vegas Oct. 15th 1995)
Watercolor and pencil on paper
9” x 12 1/4”
1995

In this series of watercolors, mirages experienced on a highway outside of Las Vegas were recorded. The mix of hot and cool layers of air in the atmosphere cause light to bend and appear curved as if reflected through water, producing the illusion of puddles on the hot asphalt. The location of these optical deceptions is particularly fitting, Las Vegas being a city that could be described as a kind of mirage in itself, an oasis in the desert proffering all sorts of illusions and fantasies.