As Above, Below: Wayfinding and Wondering

Juana Valdés’s monumental terrazzo floor fuses the history of cartography with the ingenuity of celestial wayfinding. Inspired by early migration, cartography, and maritime travel, Valdés drew inspiration from antique maps at the Hispanic Society of America, navigational diagrams, and iconography in books at the Kinney Center at the University of Massachusetts Amherst to remind us how travel has shaped our world. The cobalt blue terrazzo that spans the concourse, representing the ocean and night sky, encases the interconnectedness of the human experience as it maps lived experience on Earth to the Heavens. Valdés illustrates the evolution of navigation from the Age of Discovery to the advent of GPS today, using 274 vibrant terrazzo elements with custom inlays of aluminum, brass, marble, and lapis.