By Veronica Vale, Fine Art Consultant

Each year, art lovers and art collectors flock to Park City’s Historic Main Street in search of beautiful artwork for their homes; however, just a few hours northeast of Park City lies one stunning artwork that has made Utah its permanent home. The Spiral Jetty is an earthwork created in the norther Great Salt Lake by Robert Smithson back in 1970. Using tractors, dump trucks, and six thousand black basalt rocks, Smithson and his crew formed a coil 1,500 feet long, jutting out into the Salt Lake.

A unique and harmonious cross between nature and art, the Spiral Jetty, deserves a place on any art lover’s Utah bucket list. Visitors can take in a bird’s eye view of Robert Smithson’s groundbreaking vision from a hiking trail up the nearby mountain or simply walk among the black basalt rocks themselves.

This dynamic piece offers a new experience with every visit, as the work itself changes according the time of year and conditions. Sometimes, visitors may find the work partially submerged and crystallized white by salt, while at other times, the work may be entirely visible, surrounded by a sea of pinkish red water, peacefully lapping waves upon a barren white shore. Whatever the conditions, the surreal, alien beauty of the landscape and artwork make the trip well worth the trouble.

Tags: Art History, Basalt Rock, Earthwork, Great Salt Lake, Robert Smithson, Salt Lake, Spiral Jetty, Utah, Utah art
Posted in Gallery News