![]() Smithson’s interest in societal isolation and environmental separatism reflects the early pioneers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and their desire to leave the world they considered to be sinful. Though his earthwork is unique in its composition, Smithson’s Spiral Jetty is reminiscent of previous usages and developments of the Utah’s land. Emphasizing the earth’s connection to all life, Smithson presented his piece, in part, as an allegory for humanity’s relationship to the world, nature, and time. ![]() As the Spiral Jetty is continually worn away through time and the salty water, the spiral’s meaning, the world’s understanding of it, and its seemingly endless conceptual depth continues to develop and expand beyond the physical structure and embody the thought provoking intentions of Smithson’s creation. Because Smithson employed the use of photography, film, and writing to capture the essence of the Spiral Jetty, the earthwork’s image and reputation did not drown with the sculpture itself.Īdditionally, Smithson acknowledge the effects that time and the environment would have upon his Spiral Jetty and incorporated the transformative powers of the Great Salt Lake as a key element of his composition and entropic message. In 1971, Smithson’s Spiral Jetty became submerged in the salty water of the Great Salt Lake and did not emerge again until 2002. ![]() Smithson took photographs of his Spiral Jetty, created a thirty-two-minute film of its creation, and wrote an essay in 1972 about the earthwork’s conception and formation. Smithson hired contractor Bob Phillips to use his construction equipment to move 6,650 tons of basalt and earth into a spiral that extended into the lake’s salty, pink waters. Smithson sought to build his jetty out of the same earth to mimic the powerful effect of the land. Fascinated by high salt content the reddish tone of the Great Salt Lake, Smithson ventured to its shores and was enthralled by the awe inspiring effect of the desolate and raw landscape surrounding Rozel Point and the ways in which the world seemed to spiral around the lake’s surface in an all encompassing manner. Smithson is known as an artist who sought to challenge the role that art played in the world and the ways in which society defined it and being at the forefront of new developments in landart and earthworks. In 1970, Robert Smithson constructed his landart piece titled, Spiral Jetty, at Rozel Point on the Great Salt Lake in Utah.
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