Land Arts of the American West facts for kids

Land Arts of the American West is a special program where students learn about art and the land by traveling and camping. It helps them understand how people have always interacted with the landscape, from ancient times to today. This program shows that "land art" isn't just fancy sculptures. It can be anything from building a road to taking a walk, creating a monument, or even just leaving a mark in the sand.

The program helps students connect different subjects like art, history, and science. Each fall, students spend two months camping and traveling about 7,000 miles. They visit many interesting places, like the CLUI complex in Utah and the pottery villages of Mata Ortiz in Mexico. They also see famous earth artworks like Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty and ancient sites like Chaco Canyon.

Students learn how different things connect. For example, they see how artist Donald Judd used both modern sculptures and Navajo rugs in his work. They discover that places like Chaco Canyon and Roden Crater were used to study the sky. They also visit the Very Large Array, a science center with huge antennas that look amazing in the landscape.

During the program, students live and work outdoors. Experts in different fields, like archeology, art, and design, join them. This hands-on experience helps students develop their own ideas and projects. They learn that how humans connect with the land is often very complex and interesting.

Land Arts of the American West began at the University of New Mexico in 2000. Artist Bill Gilbert started it. From 2001, he worked with architect Chris Taylor to develop the program further. For several years, it was supported by both the University of New Mexico and the University of Texas at Austin.

In 2007, Chris Taylor helped organize a similar program in Chile, exploring the Atacama Desert. Since 2008, the program has also grown at Texas Tech University, where Taylor teaches. Today, Land Arts operates on its own, separate from these universities. It gets support from organizations like the Lannan Foundation and Andrea Nasher.

A book called Land Arts of the American West was published in April 2009. It tells the story of how the program started and grew.

Program Leaders

• Bill Gilbert: He is a professor in the Department of Art and Art History at the University of New Mexico.
• Chris Taylor: He is a professor in the College of Architecture at Texas Tech University.

Places Explored

The Land Arts program visits many unique locations across the American West and Mexico. These sites show different ways people have shaped and used the land.

Arizona Sites

• Chiricahua Mountains: A mountain range known for its interesting rock formations.
• Coolidge Dam: A large dam built on the Gila River.
• Fire Point and Point Sublime: Scenic viewpoints in the Grand Canyon.
• Grand Canyon: A massive natural wonder carved by the Colorado River.
• Roden Crater: An art project by James Turrell inside a volcanic cinder cone.

New Mexico Sites

• Anaya Springs: A natural spring area.
• Chaco Canyon: An ancient Pueblo cultural site with large stone structures.
• Bisti Badlands: A unique landscape with strange rock formations.
• Bosque del Apache: A wildlife refuge important for birds.
• Cabinetlandia: An art installation in the desert.
• Cebolla Canyon: A scenic canyon.
• El Vado Lake: A reservoir used for recreation.
• Gila Cliff Dwellings: Ancient homes built into cliffs.
• Jackpile Mine at Laguna Pueblo: A former uranium mine site.
• Madrid: A historic coal mining town.
• Mimbres River: A river known for ancient Mimbres pottery.
• Otero Mesa: A large, undeveloped grassland area.
• Plains of San Agustin: A large flat basin, home to the Very Large Array.
• Sawtooth Mountains: A mountain range.
• The Lightning Field: A famous land art installation with many steel poles.
• Turkey Creek: A natural area.
• Three Rivers: A site with ancient petroglyphs (rock carvings).
• Twin Buttes: Two prominent hills.
• Mount Withington: A mountain peak.
• Very Large Array: A radio astronomy observatory with huge dish antennas.
• Wild Rivers: A scenic area where rivers meet.

Nevada Sites

• Double Negative: A large land art sculpture made of two trenches.
• Goshute Canyon Wilderness: A protected wilderness area.
• Hoover Dam: A massive concrete arch-gravity dam.
• Lake Mead: A large reservoir formed by the Hoover Dam.

Mexico Sites

• Mata Ortiz: A village famous for its traditional pottery.

Texas Sites

• Boquillas Canyon: A canyon in Big Bend National Park.
• El Cosmico: A unique hotel and campground.
• Huaco Tanks: Rock formations with natural water pools.
• Land Heritage Institute: A place dedicated to land conservation.
• Lubbock: A city in West Texas.
• Marfa: A small town known for its art scene, including the Chinati Foundation and Judd Foundation.
• Presidio: A border town, home to the Adobe Alliance.

Utah Sites

• Blue Notch at Lake Powell: A scenic area on the lake.
• CLUI Wendover: A research organization focused on land use.
• Goblin Valley: A state park with unique mushroom-shaped rock formations.
• Horse Tanks: Natural water collection points.
• Horseshoe Canyon: A canyon with ancient rock art.
• Intrepid Potash: A potash mining operation.
• Moon House: An ancient cliff dwelling.
• Muley Point: A scenic overlook.
• Spiral Jetty: A famous earthwork sculpture by Robert Smithson.
• Sun Tunnels: A land art installation by Nancy Holt.

Guest Speakers

Many experts and artists have visited the program to share their knowledge. These guests come from various fields, including art, writing, and science. They help students think about land art in new and exciting ways. Some of the past guests include Nick Abdalla, Tori Arpad, Joe Arredondo, Steve Badgett, Charles Bowden, Penelope Boyer, Jerry Brody, Chris Calott, Matt Coolidge, Rick Dingus, Russ Draper, Sam Douglas, Boyd Elder, Clifton Ellis, Urs Peter Flueckiger, Curtis Francisco, William L. Fox, Hector Gallegos, Mary Lewis Garcia, Joel Glanzberg, David Gregor, Amy Hauft, Joan Jonas, Erik Knutzen, Eve Andree Laramee, Lucy Lippard, Barry Lopez, Graciella Martinez, Susannah Mira, Onézieme Mouton, John Poch, Rob Ray, Lea Rekow, Ann Reynolds, Jack Risley, Lori Ryker, Jack Sanders, Michael Scialdone, Kathleen Shields, Susan Spring, John Stokes, Marianne Stockebrand, Deborah Stratman, Simone Swan, Mary Tsiongas, Henry Walt, Blaine Young, and Joe Zuni.