The Time Tunnel

Dan Guzman

Interview by L. Valena

I'm so excited about this- it's our first architecture piece! You know the drill- let's talk about what you responded to.

It's very interesting, because at first the music... I listened to it several times, and it kind of pointed towards a structure. Something that was nothing like liveable space. More of an urban structure, where people could walk through it. I imagined some water and elements like nature, being involved. And then I thought to myself- they're not asking for landscape work, or anything like that. So my structure has to attach to any kind of surface- any part of the planet, and it has to respond to several feelings that I felt while listening to it. I tried to kind of pull it to one of my works, which is named 'The Rat in the Race'- it was like a circle in my mind. I had this structure for days and days in my mind going in a circle, but I didn't know how to finally get through it. And then when listening again to the piece, there was a certain part of it where it starts moving. The tempo is the same, but it kind of launches you to another feeling. And then I thought it was a response to a specific part of the structure. I decided, just with I-beams, just to make one structure, and then I just did a copy/paste in a circle trace. It was natural- kind of like I didn't do it. Some sort of a channel. When I did the first copy/paste, I said to myself I needed to make it into a circle trace, and there's my walkthrough. I eliminated all the landscape, and tried to manifest that it was not a liveable space- kind of an urban situation. I was not towards making a house or a skyscraper- it was more towards an urban kind of thing.

Do you imagine that this would be in a city?

Exactly. That was my thing. This thing- it could be in a park, it could be on a lake, like some sort of a bridge. It would be great if it was in a plaza- a big urban area where people could walk under it. It was versatile in my mind- it could fit in any place.

It's really cool. I love the idea of this structure that gives a walk-through opportunity, but there's no no enclosure necessarily- it's very porous.

Exactly. It's see-through. When you're walking through it, you can see through to the outside or to the inside, and if you have an attraction, it will be very interesting jalousie will behave towards your eyes.

The way that what would behave?

Jalousie. That kind of affect that architecture provides, where you can kind of see through, but not entirely, like mesh, or a trellis. So this structure, while standing up very tall, would be like a see-through jalousie metal, trying to avoid complete see through, but at the same time it would allow people to see through it. It was my thing, that if you were walking through on the inside, it would be very interesting the way the view you would take on the inside of the circle, and from the outside. It separates almost two different environments.

You said that when you did this, you weren't really doing it yourself- you felt like you were channeling something. Can you say more about that?

I will go to my specific moment, when I had my structure, the first one. I didn't know exactly what was next, so I got this kind of like goalie thing out of I-Beams. So I did a copy, and I didn't know where to paste it. When I decided to paste it, the full idea came into my mind. As if someone told me to trace a circle, and paste them with a certain distance between them that allows. All that information, like with specs and everything, it was in one second inserted into my mind. I don't know how that happened. Call it inspiration, call it whatever.

Does that happen to you a lot?

It happens to me in crucial moments when I need to solve a painting or architecture piece, and I don't know how I'm going to do it, but I have the faith that at the end of the moment we will, for some reason, get to the point where I will nail it. It happens to me not that often, but it has happened in several different times when creating things.

It happens to me sometimes too, and it's such a weird sensation. Where the fuck did that come from? It's like it came from the air.

Exactly! It's amazing. It's like you had this book with instructions, that you didn't write, and it was just inserted into your mind. And you immediately make the decision that it is the only way to connect or solve this problem. It's just like boom- that one punch. That's it. It's a knock-out. You get me- you've experienced it yourself. It's very interesting that for some reason I got this point, it was detonated by the music that you sent to me. If you had not sent me that, I would not have connected into this piece of architecture. So it's amazing, the way I feel it right now. Otherwise it couldn't have happened. If the client/customer or someone pushes, and you push that extra mile. But talking about it in my head, if you hadn't sent me this, I would never ever have imagined this. It wouldn't have happened otherwise.

I think it was just a gift from the project, right? It's like a combined brain that is kind of delivering these things. It's not me, it's Bait/Switch. Bait/Switch is so much bigger than any of us at this point. It has its own store of inspiration, and it just delivers things. It's wild.

It's very wild, and it's like a wave that for some reason detonates with something, and you know, at the end of the moment the wave appears, and it's natural and magical and you don't know how it happened. I appreciate a lot that you sent that to me.

Can you tell me a little bit about this title?

(Laughs) Yes. I was trying to make this concept based on the music. I have this concept of trying to put elements like water and using the air. And finally I avoided using all of those elements and went for the material thing. And then I thought, since time is not an element- it was invented by humans as a measuring device, and for some reason, it's very valuable for everyone. I thought it would be cool that this piece of structure would for some reason make... If I call it the Time Tunnel, people will walk through it, and see through the outside and the inside, and will imagine that they will be trying to connect with another time- the future or the past, but not the present. Trying to insert the idea to the visitor that they are walking through a special kind of structure that will somehow in their minds transport them to another dimension or something. When I try to make a title connect with the art piece, then the visitor will connect the full idea without explaining anything. The interpretation that they give to it, and the sensations they perceive, will be very natural for them. Very unique. Nobody will have the same experience. So calling it the Time Tunnel will provide a different experience for each individual who walks through it.

Isn't it interesting that everyone perceives time differently?

Yes! Very interesting. In music, if the point was to get to the end of the piece, there wouldn't be any sense at all to it. The best players would be the fastest. It's a matter of time. When you're listening to a piece of music, you're not aware of how many minutes or seconds have passed- you get into it, into the trip that boosts you or gets you down, or whatever. The music starts playing with your emotions, and it's the same thing with architecture. You have to connect with the feelings of the people. By calling it the Time Tunnel, it gives a spark to the person, and starts connecting in their own unique way the meaning or the concept to them.

Well, if you ever get it built, let me know! We'll definitely want to make a trip to visit it. Wouldn't it be cool if this got constructed?

You just gave me goosebumps right now. Just the thought of having it built- oh my god. I really appreciate this experience. It has put me in stages of thought that I think I never would have. I am very grateful that it came to me, and that I for some reason delivered this. I'm very satisfied and happy with the result.

Call Number: Y23MU | Y26AR.guTi

d a n  g u z  m a n  is a Living 46 year old male Mexican artist, Musician and Architect. 

His work  transmits emotions and thoughts in his own unique graphic language. 

He enables the viewer to observe in detail and figure out a message that will serve as a connection with the artist.