By Charles Moffat - 2007.

Inspired by ancient monoliths like Stone Henge and America's mound builders (in combination with modernism and minimalism) artists in the late 1960s began creating "earth art" or "land art" using rock, wood and synthetic materials. One of the first was Walter De Maria's "Mile Long Drawing" in the Mojave Desert in 1968.

The works frequently existed in the open and are left to change and erode under natural conditions. Many of the works were temporary from the beginning, have since been destroyed and now only exist as photographic documents.

Spiral Jetty, the most famous of all earth art pieces, is considered to be the masterpiece of American sculptor Robert Smithson, is the name of an earthwork sculpture built in 1970.

Built of mud, salt crystals,basalt rocks, earth, and water on the northeastern shore of the Great Salt Lake near Rozel Point in Utah, it forms a 1500-foot long and 15-foot wide counterclockwise coil jutting from the shore of the lake.

At the time of its construction, the water level of the lake was unusually low because of a drought. Within a few years, the water level returned to normal and submerged the jetty for the next three decades. Due to a recent drought, the jetty re-emerged in 1999 and is now completely exposed. The lake level rose again during the spring of 2005 due to a near record-setting snowpack in the mountains and partially submerged the Jetty again.

Originally black rock against ruddy water, it is now largely white against pink due to salt encrustation and lower water levels.

Examples of Earth Art:

Walter De Maria - Mile Long Drawing, Mojave Desert - 1968

Christo Javacheff - Wrapped Coast, Australia - 1969

Michael Heizer - Complex One Nevada - 1972

Nancy Holt - Sun Tunnels / Remembering Stonehenge, Great Basin Desert - 1973

Walter De Maria - Lightning Field, New Mexico - 1974

James Turrell - Roden Crater Project - Begun 1974-?

James Turrell - Roden Crater Project (Satellite View) - Begun 1974-?

Christo Javacheff - The Running Fence, California - 1976

Christo Javacheff - Flamingo Pink Islands, Florida - 1983

Robert Smithson - Spiral Jetty, Great Salt Lake (Image 1)- 1970

Robert Smithson - Spiral Jetty, Great Salt Lake (Image 2) - 1970

List of Earth & Land Artists:

Nancy Holt