PaintingsDirect.com Artbyte - The Dirt on Dirt

The Dirt on Dirt:
Walter de Maria's New York Earth Room
by Candace Worth


New York City, NY, USA

In the middle of New York City lies a sculpture made entirely of dirt.

Unknown to most, it has been on public display at the Dia Center for the Arts since 1980.


The New York Earth Room in New York City

Built with more than 250 cubic yards of earth covering 3,600 square feet of floor space, the total weight of the sculpture is over 280,000 pounds.


The Lightening Fields in the New Mexico desert

The New York Earth Room, 1977, is the third Earth Room sculpture executed by the artist, Walter De Maria.

The same artist created The Lightening Fields, consisting of 400 stainless steel poles one mile by one kilometer wide, in the New Mexico desert.


The Lightening Fields in the New Mexico desert

And De Maria's The Broken Kilometer, which hardly needs an explanation of its size, is an impressive feat of engineering.

All this thanks to one imaginative artist, Walter De Maria.

Read some of our archived Art Bytes.

Tell your friends about this Art Byte:

Enter the E-mail addresses, add your message and submit.

Join the Club to receive our weekly Art Bytes:

Enter your E-mail address and submit.