ELISA BALMACEDA

Portal II – A Solar Observatory of Salt and Water

Heliostat, mirror, scaffolding, salt, water, solar panel, 2026

A heliostat tracks the sun and redirects its light towards a mirror mounted on top of a tower. The mirror then sends the rays down into a cavity filled with salt. From there, the light spreads outward to draw a cosmogram that maps the sun’s path and cycles.

Elisa Balmaceda combines solar devices designed to capture or project light with ancient cosmological systems. In the Andes, sacred sites known as huacas are connected by imaginary lines called ceques, often aligned with mountains, rivers and constellations. In this work, those lines extend towards the surrounding peaks – Les Diablerets, the Dent de Morcles and the Cime de l’Est – and meet in a small salt-filled cavity. On the summer solstice, the sun rises directly above Les Diablerets.
Balmaceda’s installation is thus firmly rooted in the landscape of Bex: the device aligns with the peaks visible from the park, while the salt at its centre evokes a mineral deeply tied to the geology of the region. Conceived as an observational device, Portal II – A Solar Observatory of Salt and Water connects the sun’s energy, its astronomical function and its relationship to the earth, revealing the links between the park, the surrounding landscape and the celestial sphere.

Elisa Balmaceda (CHL, b. 1985). Lives and works between Germany and Chile.

This work was created in collaboration with Luis Balmaceda.