El Santuario del los Pobladores

Design Development drawing set

2008-09-05T09:58:00.001-07:00

Continued Design Development drawing set for the Mud Brick Labyrinth

2008-09-05T09:27:00.001-07:00

Foundation Plan + Drainage Diagram

2008-08-20T12:38:00.000-07:00

New Labyrinth Design

2008-08-14T07:18:00.000-07:00

click on images to enlarge

New Labyrinth Sketch

2008-08-08T15:01:00.000-07:00

The new labyrinth design maintains the original premise, but with a few modifications:

The end of each of the four series now returns you to the center of the labyrinth, rather than having an exit at the perimeter.
At the center of the labyrinth, there are two view platforms that are accessed via stairs sandwiched between the first two concentric walls from the center chapel.
The labyrinth is approximately 135 feet in diameter. The straw version constructed for the fiesta was 118 feet in diamter.
We are creating 4 different processional experiences with no dead ends and equal spacing between each mystery to create a steady rhythm during the journey.

Valley Courier Article

2008-07-30T06:33:00.000-07:00

Here is a link to the Valley Courier article about El Santuario de los Pobladores.

More Etchings

2008-07-14T16:37:00.000-07:00

Altar Front

2008-07-13T09:04:00.001-07:00

Hay Labyrinth Under Construction

2008-07-12T15:30:00.001-07:00

Model Under Construction

2008-07-09T14:03:00.000-07:00

Model of El Santuario de los Pobladores

Laser Etching Examples

2008-07-08T14:07:00.000-07:00

panel

detail

Temporary Furniture

2008-07-08T13:36:00.000-07:00

Ambo

laser etchings for abo

altar

laser etchings for altar

Hay Labyrinth

2008-07-08T08:57:00.000-07:00

Pink Indicates locations of Mystery Chapels

Items to Appear on Presentation Boards

2008-06-25T10:05:00.000-07:00

Parish Statement (Mission Statement)
Nicam Mopohua
Santuario Mission Statement
Information About Labyrinth (history, origins, relationship to christianity)
Information About El Santuario de los Pobladores
150 Year Celebration
Emblem
Information about the Mysteries of the Rosary
Names of All the Priests
Names and Locations of All Missions

Hay Labyrinth Schedule

2008-06-25T09:59:00.000-07:00

June 25: Hay is located
June 27: Hay delivered to site
June 28: Site preparation. Bring rakes and gloves. 8:00 am
June 30: Presentation at Parish Hall. 8:00 pm
July 7: Final presentation boards ready for laser etching
July 9: Layout of labyrinth begins
July 11-12: Staking of bales begins
July 18-20: Fiesta
August 7: Bid drawings of footings/foundations prepared for contractors

Thoughts on the Christian Labyrinth

2008-06-24T20:59:00.000-07:00

The Prayer Labyrinth was adopted by the Catholic Church across Europe during the medieval times, being often used as a means to meditate, pray and connect with God in a higher spiritual way. Numerous cathedrals in Europe have prayer labyrinths embedded into their floors, with the Cathedral of Chartres, located about 80 km from Paris having one of the most famous prayer labyrinths in the world. Prayer Labyrinths were often viewed and modeled as a journey to Jerusalem, serving as a spiritual pilgrimage for those who could not afford to travel to there.

The widest accepted Prayer Labyrinth in the Church was the eleven-circuit labyrinth, which is more symbolic of Christ's cross with its four quadrants, and grace being symbolized by the never-ending path to the center and back, allowing the pilgrim to walk the path at his own pace, stop for prayer and meditation as needed.

The Prayer Labyrinth is not a maze and rather has one path on which one cannot get lost, serving a powerful symbol of individual life journeys and pilgrimage in faith.

A Catholic writer describes their spiritual significance in this way:

"The labyrinth is a universal symbol for the world, with its complications and difficulties, which we experience on our journey through life. The entry to the labyrinth is birth; the center is death and eternal life. In Christian terms, the thread that leads us through life is divine grace. Like any pilgrimage, the labyrinth represents the inner pilgrimage we are called to make to take us to the center of our being."

Final Hay Labyrinth for Fiesta

2008-06-16T19:17:00.000-07:00

Hay labyrinth requires 828 - 900 bales.

Temporary wood furniture will be fabricated for the fiesta (altar, abo and chair). Furniture will also serve as displays that discuss the Santuario project and contain images and text that can be used elsewhere for presentation and fund raising.

Entry to labyrinth

Concrete Altar, Abo and Chair

2008-06-16T19:11:00.000-07:00

Concrete Altar

2008-06-16T19:08:00.000-07:00

The concrete altar will have the altar cloth pattern etched into the faces of the altar.

Adobe Altar

2008-06-16T19:06:00.001-07:00

June 5, 2008 Construction related notes

2008-06-16T18:42:00.000-07:00

Demetrio Valdez has agreed to donate gravel for the fiesta.
Demetrio Valdez has sourced a 3$ bale of hay instead of straw. Demetrio Valdez will take the hay after the fiesta and give credit for an equal amount in adobes.
Demetrio Valdez will supply Rael San Fratello with hay bale dimensions.
Demetrio Valdez will require 2 persons to help him haul the hay bales.
Ronald and Demetrio will stake out the area for the labyrinth on Friday June 6 at 8 AM
The concrete altar with a sandblasted or acid etched pattern of an altar cloth was approved for construction.
Ronald will contact Steve Perea, Mike Sanchez and the Gray's to see if they would be able to construct the concrete altar.
The church would like to see all three pieces, the altar, the pulpit and the chair constructed for the fiesta.
There should be some text on the pulpit or the altar that acknowledges the 150 celebration.
The pulpit and altar should have sleeves for future electricity lines.

Round and Square Labyrinths

2008-05-28T09:48:00.001-07:00

Round Labyrinth

2008-05-28T09:35:00.001-07:00

Plan

Entrance

Entrance to Mysteries of the Rosary Procession

Exit

Labyrinth

Red indicates Memorial Wall

Interior of Chapel

Red indicates Mysteries Nichos

View of Nicho from above

Labyrinth Path 1

Labyrinth Path 2

Labyrinth Path 3

Labyrinth Path 4

Square Labyrinth

2008-05-28T09:25:00.001-07:00

Plan

View of labyrinth

Red shows Heritage Wall

Inside Labyrinth

Red shows Mysteries of the Rosary Nichos

Close up of Nicho

View of Nicho from inside labyrinth

Labyrinth corridor

Water feature, altar and seating for 100 inside labyrinth

Chapel

Development of Master Plan

2008-05-28T07:50:00.000-07:00

Existing Site

Possible location of labyrinth

Connection to labyrinth from church

Possible location of Conejos County Cultural Museum

Development of path to labyrinth and adjacent historic buildings

Possible Materials to Construct Labyrinth in Conejos

2008-05-28T07:47:00.000-07:00

Hay

Adobe

Gabion and Stone

Labyrinth Precedents

2008-05-28T07:41:00.001-07:00

Meeting minutes May 6, 2008

2008-05-26T11:48:00.000-07:00

Two proposals for a Mysteries of the Rosary Labyrinth were proposed. The committee liked the round version because it was unique and would like to move forward with the round permanent version of labyrinth. The committee also liked the idea of a chapel in the center of the labyrinth. In the short-term, the committee would like to see if a study version could be built by the fiesta (June 18, 19, 20) out of hay. If hay isn't available at that time, an alternate version of available materials could be constructed for the fiesta.

In order to accomplish a temporary labyrinth by the fiesta date, many things have to be done, including:

Find out the availability of hay by July (Gary and Lorenzo)
Find the dimensions of available bales.
The temporary installation could feature some of the materials we might consider for the Permanent version (adobe, gabion, etc).
The various hay sizes for a temporary labyrinth are: small, 1/2 ton, 3/4 ton, 1 ton

Several other comments were made about the labyrinth design in general. They are:

An altar is a priority for the fiesta
The altar could be made of different materials and could be temporary (adobe?)
Seating in round chapel should focus towards altar
Exits from labyrinth should be designed, leading the person back to a particular location.
Two material options for the permanent labyrinth are adobe and gabion baskets. Ronald will price those materials for next meeting.
A nicho should be large enough to acommodate both a group and an individual

A tentative schedule was developed:

May 6 - May 15: dimensions, sizes, number (Lawrence and Gary)

May 27 : final design for celebration, site work, detail design

June 27: site prep, start stacking

July 18: Celebration

El Santuario de los Pobladores

2008-04-01T18:25:00.000-07:00

The main project is to be called El Santuario de los Pobladores and is to be part of a larger series of projects that are to include a columbarium and a Conejos History Museum, of which a cornerstone of the collection is to include reliquary from the Conejos parish and its missions.

El Santuario de los Pobladores is a landscape interpretation of The Mysteries of the Rosary where the rosary can be prayed and the project has several goals. Among those goals are:

Tourism: The project is intended to attract tourists as part of larger economic development and to draw interest to the parish and the history and culture of the region. This may invite passers-by to donate funds to the church.
Meditation: El Santuario del los Pobladores is place for spiritual reflection, prayer and introspection.
Art: The project will showcase several art artifacts and sculpture that is part of the meditation rituals.
Community: The Santuario should be a place where other community and church events can take place outdoors such as weddings, masses, musical performances, dances, etc. The project should be a reflection of the community and enrich the Catholic community
Iconic: The project should be recognizable as an important place within the community

El Santuario de los Pobladores is to have the following program:

chapel
altar
seating for 100 people
garden
lighting
statue
memorial wall with names of parishioners
processional area
art for each mystery (20 pieces)
nichos for housing the art that are for sale to individuals/families
bathrooms
water feature

The altar is the priority of this project and should be ready for the 150th anniversary of the Parish for a festival celebrating the sesquicentennial.