Staff Reports | Happenings & Events
Visitors to Scottsdale Arts’ annual Canal Convergence, from Nov. 6-15, will experience a variety of interactive, light-based artworks that reflect, embody or explore elements of Arizona and the Southwest.
This year’s installations will explore the theme of Western Nature through environmental and cultural landscapes that define the American West, including Utah-based In Theory Art Studio’s “grandmother turtle,” according to a press release.
“Bringing ‘grandmother turtle’ to Scottsdale allows us to explore how light art can spark genuine curiosity about our natural environment,” Emily Nicolosi, founder of In Theory Art Studio, said. “Canal Convergence is a very unique waterfront stage, where art, innovation and community meaningfully intersect. We are thrilled to share our work with Scottsdale visitors this year, inviting everyone to play, reflect and reimagine our collective connection to the West.”
In Theory Art Studio exhibited at last year’s Canal Convergence with the rainbow dichroic and LED sculpture “polychroma.” This year, the studio collaborated with Santa Clara Pueblo artist Nora Naranjo-Morse and former Navajo Nation Poet Laureate Laura Tohe, who was recently appointed Arizona Poet Laureate, to add contemporary petroglyphs and lyrical poetry laser-cut into the steel shell and illuminated by internal LEDs.
“Returning to Canal Convergence is an incredible honor for us, especially under a theme that resonates so deeply with our practice,” Ms. Nicolosi said. “Living and hosting our studio on 18 acres in the Wild West, we feel the pulse of Western Nature in our daily lives — and were directly inspired by this intimate relationship with the desert to create a desert tortoise for ‘grandmother turtle.’”
In addition to “grandmother turtle,” In Theory Art Studio will present a second artwork at the 2026 event: “the weight of light,” a sculpture depicting a frozen moment of electrical energy in the form of an iridescent, crystalline lightning bolt.
During the event, LEDs slowly pulse with a resting kinetic hum. When activated through participant interaction, the piece illuminates with a vertical lightning effect accompanied by thunder sounds.
Other artworks scheduled for Canal Convergence include:
- “KaKtos,” by Sydney-based studio Amigo & Amigo, a forest of 10 giant, inflatable and internally lit cacti.
- “APOGEE,” by Melbourne-based creative studio Chalk River Labs, a projection sculpture featuring two swings that allow visitors to become part of the artwork.
- “Dream Rider,” by William Nemitoff with Curious Form, an internally lit wild horse sculpture that allows participants to climb inside, ascend its neck and slide down its illuminated mane.
- “Sky Wrangler,” also by Mr. Nemitoff with Curious Form, a 25-foot-tall interactive hot-air-balloon sculpture where visitors can climb into a rotating basket while projected light and historic Western film footage move across the balloon.
- “The Way The West Was Sold,” by character artists collective Jolly Productions, featuring performers portraying period snake-oil salesmen and advertisers presenting romanticized depictions of the American West. The performances will take place within a vintage media installation along the Scottsdale Waterfront throughout the event.
- “Desert Choir,” by Montreal-based OTTOMA, a series of interactive light and sound stations that use microphones to transform visitor voices into traveling light displays and animal calls. Three circular projection screens will be suspended above the canal, with corresponding interaction stations on land.
- “Another Slice of Reality: An Evolving Nature,” by artist and creative technologist Shaoyu Su x LedPulse, inspired by the relationship among nature, infrastructure and public life. Visitor interactions contribute to a shared experience that evolves throughout the event.
- “Western Fire Garden,” by returning artist Walter Productions, a floating installation incorporating fire, light, sound and sculpture. The artwork depicts Sonoran Desert plants and animals through LED outlines, reflections and ambient sound.
- “Prairie Fire,” by Calgary-based True North Absurdities, a life-sized sculpture of a rearing horse. Visitors can activate the piece by pressing a button, triggering controlled bursts of flame.
“This year’s artworks explore both traditional and contemporary themes of the American West,” Jennifer Gill, director of Canal Convergence, said. “From the iconic flora and fauna of the desert brought to life through light and public engagement, to a three-dimensional LED display that demonstrates the evolving relationship between nature and public life in the Southwest, Canal Convergence attendees will experience the ‘nature’ of the American West like never before.”
