Land Art Spiral Jetty, D.Harding

D.Harding presentation on Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty.

The Spiral Jetty is a man made spiral shaped rock promenade , where artist Robert Smithson organised for local rock to be quarried and laid in a large spiral shape into the salt pan of the Salt Lake in Utah, U.S.A. Constructed in April 1970, the spiral survives the changing environment and currently sits dry well away from the waters edge , as the lake level has dropped through a combination of a changing climate and increased agricultural demand for the water feeding the lake.

D Harding approaches this presentation with a detailed description of his indigenous history, and his interaction with land. D.Harding talks of his use of the dust of his home region which create work that illuminates a view of landscape that is only evident with a long history of association. D.Harding asks so many questions of how we look for monumentality, yet questions this validity in light of a colonial interaction with land . His answer to a audience question on if he would visit the Jetty and how this would influence his views sums up this very vital and relevant presentation.