Paper 1 A Sedimentation Of The Mind: Earth Project

Paper 1
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Paper 1
In the article, “A Sedimentation of the Mind: Earth Project” Smithson investigates the relationship between art and the earth or in other words the human mind and the earth. He focuses on the landscape theory whereby he believed that art played a major role in understanding the landscape. According to him, just like life and nature, good art should be in a continuous process of movement and should be instrumental in understanding the landscape.
In his theory, the author addresses the issue of technology and suggests that it should not be applicable where art is concerned due to its limitations. His theory further believes that traditional methods that are based on nature are better than technology because “all technology falls apart over time.” He advocates for the use of old, natural elements when he talks about “from steel to rust” (Smithson 1968).The theory emphasizes the significance of acknowledging and incorporating impurities in artworks since these are what make the world complete and real. The theory also notes the fact that artists have no limits and are free to use their tools in whichever way as guided by their minds. Generally, Smithson in his theory believes that artists try to organize the world, which is otherwise fractured and bleak.
Ideally, Robert Smithson incorporated his ideas about the relationship between art and landscape in his artworks. In this regard, one of the most notable of his artworks is the Spiral Jetty. The mentioned was an earthwork by this sculptor and artist and is located in the Great Salt Lake. The main components of the counter-clockwise spiral are earth, wate...