Playa Works: The Myth Of The Empty

Acknowledgments

Several people at the University of Nevada, Reno (unr) have lent their intellectual capital to Playa Works. When describing to Scott Slovic at unr’s Center for Environmental Arts and Humanities in 1998 how the arc of my writing was proceeding through deserts of the world, including the Antarctic, he pointed out to me that I seemed to be formulating an arid-land aesthetic, an insight typical of Scott’s generosity and in part responsible for this book. His colleagues Cheryll Glotfelty, Mike Branch, and Michael Cohen have also encouraged my work. Dr. Robert Solso at the unr Department of Psychology, author of Cognition and the Visual Arts, waited patiently below me with a safety net every time I climbed out on the limb of the cognitive sciences. My speculations in that arena, however, remain solely my responsibility. Bob Blesse, who runs both Special Collections at the unr Library and the Black Rock Press, has been a supportive colleague for two decades , which has often translated into awards from the Hilliard Foundation to assist with travel. I also want to thank Cheryl Taylor, formerly of the Nevada Historical Society, and Jim McCormick, formerly the chair of the unr Art Department and the founder of the ongoing Nevada Artists Registry Project, for their research into the history of the visual arts in the state. Acknowledgments x Illustrations Derek Scammel, at the Department of Energy in Las Vegas, has been a knowledgeable guide to the Nevada Test Site for many years. Jim Graham, one of the media people for Burning Man, provided excellent coordination with that organization. Mike Bilbo in the Winnemucca office of the Bureau of Land Management likewise was generous with information about the Black Rock Desert and the permitting process for Burning Man. The geomorphologist Barbara Bilbo helped straighten out some of the geology of playas. The University of Nevada Press has been a publisher of two of my previous books, and Margaret Dalrymple, formerly its editor-inchief , agreed to a request to continue as my editor with grace and elan. Ron Latimer, director of the press, Carrie House, their talented designer, and Christine Campbell in marketing have also provided close support. I can never get through one of these acknowledgments without thanking Alvin McLane, who continues to drag me across playas, through sand dunes and rock gardens, and up peaks of varying dimensions . He is quite solely responsible for my obsession with the desert, though I cannot hold him or anyone else responsible for any mistakes I may commit either outdoors or in Playa Works. Tom Radko,my close friend and agent,shores up the other end of my writing life with humor and goodwill. x Acknowledgments ...