Various Conceptions of Land Art

I believe that Land Art is best known by its oppositions. By deciding what is NOT Land Art, it becomes easier to identify what Land Art is and what it is about.

I've asked some Minnesotans if they can think of examples of local Land Art and have gotten some interesting suggestions.

The Snowman in North Saint Paul. 

While playful and creative, this snowman does not comment directly

 on anything ecological or political and is not Land art. It was constructed out of stucco for the purpose of being the city's icon. If anything, this suggestion clearly demonstrates a misunderstanding of the goal and type of art Land art is.

 

Rather, see Andrew Goldsworthy's Midsummer Snowballs as an example of European Land art made in 2000 and placed in the streets of London to comment on global warming.

The "Witches' Tower" water-tower in Minneapolis.

This is also not considered Land art. While this is an interesting architectural design for a water-tower, it does not spark particular dialogue or have a site-specific purpose related to landscape other than delivering water to the neighborhood residents.

The Japanese Garden and the Como Zoo Conservatory/Park Reserve in Saint Paul strikes a balance between architecture and formal gardens. Though this location celebrates the contours of the land in its placement, I would not deem it Land art. The Japanese garden, like zen gardens are debatable, but the conservatory itself has a functional purpose all its own.

 

 

I would not consider Woodbury's "Central Park" and Library to be a form of Land art, although it strikes a comparable similarity to Maya Lin's The Character of a Hill, Under Glass.

    

 

The Woodbury "Central Park" does function as a communal gathering place, as Lin's piece acts as a center for commerce, but I do not see it as Land art because there are benches and chairs, much like a park, whereas Lin's piece is a conceptual space where one can meander on rolling wooden hills.

Mounds Park in Saint Paul.

These mounds were constructed over 2,000  years ago. Like the Serpent Mound in Ohio, the mounds in Saint Paul are very much Earthworks. Although the context of their creation has been lost on today's residents, these mounds were created as part of a cultural ritual of the Hopewellian Indians.

Finally, another piece that is Land art while also a scientific experiment is Mel Chin's Revival Field (1990-1993). This is a conception of Land art as an environmentally sustainable reclamation plan for a toxic waste site.  Chin's goal was to restore and maintain nature while keep industrialization. This project not only acknowledges that landfills exist and are harmful to the original environment, it suggests a solution for restoration and equilibrium between human industrialization and nature.

As you can see, Land Art is not easy to identify if one is not familiar with its concepts. If one can recognize the importance of context or placement within landscape, the artist's intention, materials of construction, and resistance to formal structures of art, the identification of Land art can be simplified.