Rhythms of Life

Lonely Planet review

Australian artist Andrew Rogers, not content with sculpture on a conventional scale, has included Potosí as one of the sites for his fascinating global 'Rhythms of Life' project, where enormous, fluid, powerful, stone forms have been built in sites as diverse as Sri Lanka, Australia, and Israel.

Rogers has endowed Potosí with three geoglyphs. Two adjacent ones, Circles and Presence, have their inspiration in ancient rock art found in the Potosí area. The third, on a hill near Cerro Rico, and the artistic centerpiece, is a complex, inspirational abstract figure named Rhythms of Life and derived from a Rogers bronze sculpture in Melbourne. But on a massive scale - the structure covers an area of 10,000 sq m.

The project was created with over 500 locals from an impoverished miners' barrio (district), using vernacular drystone-wall techniques. 'It was wonderful to see a community embrace and remember their heritage, and work together to perpetuate it for their children and grandchildren,' enthused Rogers.

While the geoglyphs are best viewed from a distance (and in the morning) - you have to climb up to them to really appreciate their scale and construction. The first two can be easily (if you've adapted to the altitude!) climbed to from near the tranca (highway police post) on the Oruro road at the edge of town; the third can be reached from the southwest of the city (you can get most of the way by taxi).