a sculptural land-art installation in Rosslyn, Virginia by Nancy Holt. Completed in 1984, it was the first major commissioned public art project in the United States.
The sculpture, which replaced a run-down gas station, consists of five spheres, two pools, four steel poles, a stairway, a large tunnel for passage, a small tunnel for viewing and plantings.
Every year on August 1, at 9:30 a.m., visitors arrive at the 0.4 acre park to witness the convergence of shadows. Holt, chose Aug. 1 to commemorate the day in 1860 when William Henry Ross purchased the land that became Rosslyn, according to Angela A. Adams, the director of Arlington Public Art. The park’s large spheres are designed to resemble fallen, extinguished stars.