Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty Recognised by U.S. Government

Robert Smithson 1938-1973, United States Follow +

American sculptor Robert Smithson‘s iconic land art piece Spiral Jetty (1970) has entered the National Register of Historic Places, the U.S. federal government’s official list of sites deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or artistic value.

Situated at Rozel Point peninsula on the northeastern shore of Great Salt Lake in Utah, Spiral Jetty comprises a 460-metre-long, 4.6-metre-wide counterclockwise coil built from mud, salt crystals, and basalt rocks.

Smithson allegedly had a hard time convincing a contractor to take on the project. The realisation required moving some 6,650 kilogrammes of rock and earth into the lake, which was done twice over nine days as the artist was displeased with the initial configuration.

In 1999, the artist’s estate donated the artwork to Dia Art Foundation, who currently maintain the lease of the land. With the lake drying in recent years, a mile of lakebed now separates the artwork from the shore. Depending on water levels, the sculpture can be visible or submerged.

‘The protective review afforded by the National Register designation further advances our efforts to preserve Spiral Jetty as Smithson intended,’ said Dia curator and co-department head, Jordan Carter.

Carter added that conservation efforts would also be directed at Great Salt Lake, which is ‘integral to the work itself’. —[O]

Main image: Robert Smithson, Spiral Jetty (1970). Great Salt Lake, Utah. © Holt/Smithson Foundation and Dia Art Foundation / Licensed by VAGA at Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York. Photo: Victoria Sambunaris.