Fulltext 10466

blending nature:
Land Art as Expression of Culture, Aesthetics and Sustainability in the Regeneration of

Postindustrial Landscapes.
MacLeod Tailings Reclamation Project as Example.
A thesis submitted in this month of June 2012 by:

Margaretha Lehenbauer, B.Env.D.
In partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of
Master of Landscape Architecture |

Masterstudium Landschaftsplanung und Landschaftsarchitektur
of the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria |

Universität für Bodenkultur Wien, Österreich
Department of Landscape Architecture | Institut für Landschaftsarchitektur (ILA)

abstract
The postindustrial landscape has great potential. The fascination with how to deal with these sites have especially interested land artists. The
question of how land art can be used to regenerate postindustrial landscapes, especially in post-mining situations, is a fundamental aspect
in this thesis. The thesis attempts to explore the role land art has in this process through an intensive literature research and review of prec-
edent project examples. A concrete example, Martha Schwartz’s MacLeod Tailing Reclamation Project in Geraldton, Canada, is examined
through a site inventory and spatial perception analysis. Also discussed is how land art developed within the discourse of landscape archi-
tecture, how land art through aesthetics challenges our perceptions of postindustrial landscapes, and if land art can be considered sustain-
able in the context of the postindustrial.
Landscape architects and artists are often asked to generate scenarios on what can be done next with these sites. Through land art, the
dynamics of human-use versus nature is explored. In the postindustrial, land art can exaggerate the medium of nature, furthering our un-
derstanding of what nature actually is. In a society where the dependency on natural resources is staggering, land art can bring to people’s
attention cultural phenomenons that are undervalued or exploited, like for example our relationship to nature. Land art is used to develop the
aesthetic experiences within a landscape resulting in a new appreciation for the postindustrial landscape. As our perceptions of the postin-
dustrial changes, it influences a transformation in social, cultural, environmental and artistic systems, leading to a new understanding of sus-
tainable thinking. Land art captures the energy and expression of place by questioning the temporal and spatial experiences in landscapes.
The MacLeod Tailings Reclamation Project can be an example of a sustainable land art project. The project shows the power of design in
remaking a derelict site into a new landscape. More than a beautiful earthwork, the landform is also a cultural artefact highlighting the history
and role of mining of the town. Land art challenges our perception of the postindustrial site, transforming into a place of beauty and wonder.
Keywords: Land Art, Postindustrial Landscapes, Aesthetics, Cultural expression, Sustainability, Martha Schwartz
Die postindustrielle Landschaft besitzt eine Vielzahl an Potentialen. Die Faszination sich mit diesen Orten auseinander zu setzten liegt vor 3
allem bei land artists. Ein wesentliche Aufgabe dieser Masterarbeit ist die Diskussion der Frage, wie Land-art postindustriellen Landschaften,
mit Fokus auf Bergbau-Folgelandschaften, revitalisieren kann. Die Beantwortung dieser Frage erfolgt durch eine intensive Literaturrecher-
che und Auseinandersetzung mit verschiedenen Beispielen aus der Literatur. Anhand eines konkreten Beispieles, des Projektes MacLeod
Tailings Reclamation Project in Geraldton, Kanada, von Martha Schwartz, wird Vorort der Bestand aufgenommen und im Anschluss durch
die Raumwahrnehmungsanalyse detailliert betrachtet. Zudem wird die Entwicklung der Land-art im Diskurs der Landschaftsarchitektur, wie
Land-art unsere Wahrnehmungen der postindustrielle Landschaften durch Ästhetik verändern kann und ob Land-art als nachhaltig be-
trachtet werden kann angesprochen.
Besonders Landschaftsarchitekten und Künstler sind gefordert, sich Szenerien zu überlegen, wie mit postindustriellen Landschaften umge-
gangen werden soll. Durch Land-art besteht die Möglichkeit über Natur zu reflektieren, die das allgemeine Naturverständnis übersteigt. Vor
allem in einer Gesellschaft in der die Abhängigkeit von natürlichen Ressourcen überwältigend ist, ist dies von großer Bedeutung. Land-art
kann die Aufmerksamkeit auf kulturelle Phänomene, wie u.a. die Ausbeutung von Natur. Wie sich der Mensch in die Landschaft einfügt und
sich auf sie auswirkt, bestimmt im großen Maße, wie sie wahrgenommen wird. Wird diese Wahrnehmung verändert, beeinflusst es daher
auch unsere sozialen, kulturellen, ökologischen und künstlerischen Systeme. Dadurch kann Land-art diesen und nachfolgenden Generation-
en neue Perspektiven für nachhaltiges Denken erschließen. Zuletzt kann Land-art die Energie und Charakter, durch die Auseinandersetzung
mit temporalen und räumlichen Ebenen der Landschaft, von Orten einfangen. Land-art wird zudem auch verwendet um die ästhetische
Wahrnehmung einer Landschaft zu entwickeln. Dadurch können Menschen mit der postindustriellen Landschaft eine Verbindung schaffen.
MacLeod Tailings Reclamation Projekt kann als Beispiel für nachhaltige Land-art betrachtet werden. Das Projekt zeigt, wie durch ein ar-
tistischen Eingriff einen verlassener Ort, in eine neue Landschaft verwandelt werden kann. Die künstlich geschaffene Topograohie ist mehr
als nur verschönernde Erdarbeiten, sie sind auch kulturelle Artefakte, die die Geschichte und Rolle des Bergbaus der Stadt unterstreichen.
Land-art verändert die Wahrnehmung dieser postindustriellen Landschaft und verwandelt sie in einen Ort der Schönheit und Wunder.
Schlagwörter: Land-art, postindustrielle Landschaft, Ästhetik, kulturelle Äußerung, Nachhaltigkeit, Martha Schwartz
contents
Abstract
Contents
Acknowledgements
6 Chapter One: Framework 68 Chapter Four: Interventions

8 | Introduction 70 | Broken Circle + Spiral Hill, Robert Smithson
16 | Hypothesis + Aim of Work 72 | Terra Nova: Yellow Ramp, Herman Prigann
18 | Research Questions 74 | Tree Mountain, Agnes Denes
19 | Methods 76 | Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin
26 Chapter Two: Context 78 Chapter Five: Interesting

28 | The Industrial Landscape 80 | McLeod Tailings Reclamation Project
Industry as Culture 84 | Site Context
The Postindustrial Site 90 | Site Inventory + Analysis
Reclaiming the Landscape 99 | Spatial Site Analysis
36 | The Land Art Ideal
Land Art Movement 110 Chapter Six: Findings
Environmental Art 112 | Discussion
Land Art + Landscape Architecture 121 | Conclusion
Land Art as Reclamation
126 Appendix
56 Chapter Three: Appreciation 127 | References
58 | The Postindustrial Aesthetic 132 | List of Images + Credits
Land Art Aesthetic 136 | Visitor Questionnaire + Results
Environmental Aesthetic
Appreciating the Postindustrial
Intervention
The Interesting
acknowledgements
Thank you Erwin for your support, insight, words of encouragement, and confidence during this entire process. I know it has taken
longer than initially expected but it got there...eventually.
Thank you Lee for your extensive knowledge of the MacLeod Tailings Reclamation Project and for all of your hospitality and help
during my visit to Geraldton in the summer.
Thank you to my friends and family, new and old, for all the learning experiences you have forced me to go through and good times
enjoying it along the way. You know who you are...but a special thank you Ulli for letting me talk about my new passion land art,
among many other things. It is what it is and it is awesome...and Barbara for knowing exactly always the right thing to say when I
needed to hear it.
Thank you to my other design colleagues for your support, encouragement and always interesting conversations.
5
Thank you Andrea for always being just a skype call away. Your support is felt even thousand kilometers away. I’m not sure that I
could have done this without you.
Thank you Mom and Dad for raising me to be the person I am today. I am forever grateful for all the privileges in my life and for my
place I’m still trying to create in this world.
chapter one: framework
introduction
Landscapes matter. There are few things in the world as important as the land- Ill. 1 | (previous page): Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson, Great
Salt Lake near Rezel Point, Utah, USA, 1970
scapes in which we interact everyday. They belong to all of us. Each of us make
decisions in how we choose to live in the world around us. Landscapes are rich in-
tellectually, in the formation of our cultural values and debate, in place, spatially, and
materially.1 We shape landscapes in all aspects of our everyday lives. Landscapes
are a fundamental element in human life, in which we inhabit, communicate, ex-
press ourselves, socialise, produce, live, and unfortunately also sometimes exploit.
Martha Schwartz states, “The landscape is the canvas upon which we live our lives,
join together as communities, and build our cities”.2 Therefore, there is a responsi-
bility in how we treat the landscapes in which we find ourselves. How we shape and
use landscapes provide cues to what it is that humankind holds important. How the
world and its resources are valued, is shown in how we value the landscapes we
live in.
Unfortunately, sometimes the disconnect to what people say they care about and
what they actually care about are not always one in the same.3 One must only con-
sider the amount of waste and misuse of resources occurring to see how evident
that is. As the demand for natural resources continues to increase, so does the im-
pact and pressures put on the natural world. Scars are literally being left in the land-
scape as resources are being extracted and what is left over are old industrial sites,
depleted of function or even a place in our landscapes as they are considered to be
ugly and useless. Efforts are made worldwide to minimize the affects of resource
extraction on the environment through so-called reclamation projects. In particular,
1 | Verzone, C. (2009): Terragrams Podcast: John Beardsley, http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2009/7/1_John_
Beardsley.html (03.01.2012)
2 | Schwartz, M. (2011): http://www.marthaschwartz.com/writings_the_softer_side.html (23.02.2012)
3 | Verzone, C. (2007): Terragrams Podcast: Elizabeth Meyer. http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2007/3/1_Eliza-
beth_Meyer.html (03.01.2012)
former mines are being remade into new landscapes through remediation. Mine
reclamation is the process of minimising and mitigating the effects of mining on the
environment. It is the process of creating new, useful, even productive landscapes,
that achieve ecological, economical, and social goals by rejuvenating the site.4 This
is however not enough, the perceptions are these types of landscape also need to
change, if a postindustrial site can find a new purpose.
There are many different methods and techniques used in the reclamation process.
One method attempts to return the sites back to preindustrial conditions. The topic
is becoming more relevant as more sites come to their industrial life’s end. Profes-
sionals from a wide range of disciplines have looked at the potentials and opportu-
nities of these site, not only from a technical, practical problem solving position but
also as from a cultural, aesthetic perspective. The postindustrial site has inspired
solutions by engineers, ecologists, architects, politicians, and even artists. It is no
longer the question of whether something needs to be done to restore the land-
scape but rather the question of what should to be done with these types of sites. 9
Therefore, a new way of looking and understanding the postindustrial landscape is
required.
Postindustrial sites have been explored for a long time, possibly since the start of
the industrial revolution. During the 1960s and 70s, due to a strong push of envi-
ronmentalism, strategies of how to deal with industrial sites were beginning to be
discussed. (HöFER, 2012, 57) Efforts were made by governments and agencies

worldwide to regulate the impact these sites have on the environment. For example
in Germany, since the 1960s, different strategies were discussed in the redevelop-
ment of brownfield sites. (HöFER, 2012, 57). One approach looked at the ‘idealiza-
tion of industry, industrial elements as elements of historic vernacular landscapes’.
A second approach looked at the idea of seeing brownfields as ‘places with specific
character’, in particular the regeneration qualities of spontaneous vegetation as a
type of new nature. Another strategy continues on the idea of ‘urban wilderness’,
4 | Ministry of Northern Development and Mines (2012): Mine Site Reclamation and Closure. http://www.ontario.ca/en/informa-
tion_bundle/mineral/STEL02_038816.html (03.21.2012)
looking at how nature retakes abandoned sites and explores the ideas of the ‘un-
common and sublime aesthetics’ of the industrial site. (HöFER, 2012, 57)
In 1977, the United States of America, passed the Surface Mining Control and Rec-
lamation Act (SMCRA) out of environmental concerns of the effects of strip mining.5
This law requires the complete restoration of all strip mines and it also provided
funds for states to pay for the reclamation of earlier, unregulated sites. In Canada,
each province regulates the management of its own natural resources. The prov-
inces are also responsible to decide how the land is to be restored to pre-mining
conditions and how industries mitigate its effects on the environment.6 What is com-
mon to these initiatives, are that after the extraction of natural resources from the
land, landscapes are to be returned to their original condition. Reclamation projects
attempt to return industrial landscapes to pre-industrial conditions. The question
remains however, can these ruined landscapes have a new life after such an inva-
sive process? What happens to sites that no longer produce resources and have
come to its industrial life’s end? Can they really be returned to preindustrial condi-
tions? Do we only come up with surface solutions for the problems we create? As
human demand for natural resources continually increase, so does our impact on
the natural world. Scars literally are being left in the landscape. The idea that these
types of landscape scars can be healed through design is interesting. The possibil-
ity of how to return these sites again into sustainable, living landscapes, needs to
be addressed.
In recent years, attention has be given to the redevelopment of postindustrial land-

scapes, not only in an urban context but also sites that are further away from cities.
Projects by landscape architects like Peter Latz and Julie Bargmann show the po-
tential these sites have and what role landscape architects can play in the rejuvena-
tion of the areas. The landscape architecture firm Latz + Partner is well known for
the work of Landscape Park Duisburg Nord in the Ruhr area of Germany. The 230
5 | Surface mining control and reclamation act of 1977, Public Law 95-87, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement,
http://www.osmre.gov/topic/SMCRA/publiclaw95-87.shtm (04.19.2012)
6 | Natural Resources Canada (2012): http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/minerals-metals/technology/3238 (04.19.2012)
hectare site was a former steel mill, redesigned into a new type of landscape park,
appreciating the postindustrial history of the site rather than ignoring what the site
was. As their company profile states, “the site itself and ecological programs are
forming the spaces of the future”.7 The project won numerous international awards
for the creation of a ‘new landscape’. The design was significant because it at-
tempted to ‘preserve’ and use the existing site as it. Latz recognised the value of
the site’s current condition and used the existing patterns and fragments formed
through industrial use on site in a new, interesting way. (WEILACHER, 2008, 106)
These industrial elements were taken, developed, and re-interpreted into a ‘new
syntax’ for the park, interlacing the features together into a new landscape. The
project not only had to overcome issues of heavy contaminations in its redesign but
the entire Ruhr District of Germany was attempting through projects to set a new
‘quality building and planning standards for the environmental, economic and social
transformation of an old industrialised region’.8
Julie Bargmann’s landscape reclamation projects at D.I.R.T. Studio explore the ‘past 11
and present industrial operations and urban processes in relationship to ecological
systems, cultural constructs and emerging technologies’.9 Bargmann’s interest in
industrial sites like closed quarries, abandoned mines, fallow factories, and urban
rail yards has lead to a number of interesting projects and research. Bargmann’s
7 | Latz & Partner (2012): Company website: http://www.latzundpartner.de/sites/view/office/ (11.05.2012)
8 | Latz & Partner (2012): Company website: http://www.latzundpartner.de/projects/detail/17 (11.05.2012)
Ill. 2 | (below): Landscape Park Duisburg Nord, Latz & Partner, 9 | D.I.R.T Studio (2012): Company website: http://www.dirtstudio.com/ (10.05.2012)

Ruhr, Germany, 1990-2002
approach to the rejuvenation of these types of sites involve a multi-disciplinary
collaboration with other experts. The projects join teams of architects, planners,
landscape architects, artists, engineers, historians, ecologists, etc., bringing about
the next evolution of these landscapes.10
Jane Amidon’s article Big Nature also suggests three different design approaches in
remediation practices: Inhabiting, Transforming, and Recalibrating. (AMIDON, 2010,
168) Amidon uses Latz + Partner’s Landscape Park Duisburg Nord as an example of
inhabiting, using the images of “then” versus “now” as a way to create a new ‘sce-
nographic narrative’. Transforming is displayed, for example, Julie Bargmann’s AMD
& ART Park where the park literally cleans the industrial contaminates from site. The
land art movement of the 1960s and 70s also provided a ‘model for instability in the
designed landscape’ in these projects. Actions such inundation, deposition, erosion,
growth, and decay provided ‘metaphoric language and formalism’, as works of this
time directly involved with the process of the site. AMIDON (2010, 168) also sug-
gests that it is through land art when ‘site as cultural realm’ started to align with ‘site
as environmental function’. Recalibrating refers to later projects that were similar to
transforming but incorporated a fluid program and identity. (AMIDON, 2010, 169)
The inclusion of land art elements into the remediation and reclamation process,
marked a beginning of understanding the importance of the perception of these
sites. Jeffrey Kastner argues in his book Land and Environmental Art that there are
Ill. 3 | (below): Vintondale Reclamation Park, D.I.R.T. Studio,
10 | D.I.R.T. Studio website (2012): http://www.dirtstudio.com/ (10.05.2012)
Vintondale, Pennsylvania, 1995-2004
many relationships that define the human condition. Primary, it is our connection to
the environment that is fundamental. “We worship and loathe it, sanctify and destroy
it ... we aspire to leave our mark, inscribing our observations and gestures within the
landscape, attempting to translate and transgress the space within which we find
ourselves”. (KASTNER, 1998, 11) Artists have attempted to challenge our under-
standing of the landscape through installations like land art. Kastner also attempts
to define the affect land and environmental art can have in our understanding of
landscapes. Malcolm ANDREWS (1999, 205) suggests that land art can be defined
by a large range of projects. He outlines the different directions of land art in the fol-
lowing categories:
1. Minimal and ephemeral interventions directly in a site;
2. Large-scale sculptural earthworks on site;
3. Unmediated gallery installations that use materials collected directly from site;
4. Landscape reclamation or ‘planned naturalization’ of industrial sites;
5. Works of ‘conservation of natural land’ involving making decisions about what
traditional usages of the land are retained.
13
The wide range of land art projects can make finding a definition of land art difficult.
Many projects do not fall directly under one category but tend to combine aspects
of more than one. This thesis focuses on land art that is used in reclamation proj-
ects and how it can be discussed in terms of sustainability. The work attempts to
explore how land art can be used as remediation tool for postindustrial landscapes
and improvements to landscapes, relying on landscape architects for scenarios

and techniques to decide what needs to be done next.11 It can also be a catalyst
for change, exploring the patterns of change in social, cultural, environmental, and
artistic systems, “We seem to have forgotten that sustainability itself is a cultural
notion, and that a building or a place must have value to people if it is to be used
sustainably”.12
Land art has the ability to capture the energy and expression of place, raising ques-
11 | Verzone, C. (2006): Terragrams Podcast: James Corner, http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2006/3/23_James_
Corner.html (03.01.2012)
12 | Schwartz, M. (2011): http://www.marthaschwartz.com/writings_the_softer_side.html (23.02.2012)
tions about experience of time and space (temporal and spatial aspects) in land-
scapes. It explore the theme of human versus nature and puts the landscape as the
framework. It can be a tool used in cultural expression, bringing peoples attention to
cultural phenomenons that are undervalued: the art of landscape architecture as an
expression of cultural values that is reinforced by many related disciplines.13 “Sus-
tainable landscape form and content will seek to reveal this ecological order through
an interplay of surface and core unique to both place and culture”. (THAYER, 1994,
191)
Sustainability itself has long been a term used in the discussion of natural resource
management. The idea that everyone has an ecological, social, and economic
responsibility in how we use and dispose of resources. Sustainability is also unfor-
tunately becoming a word, that is losing its meaning and strength in discourse. The
following definition of sustainability fits well within this framework.
“Sustainable development seeks…to respond to five broad requirements: 1)
integration of conservation and development; 2) satisfaction of basic human
needs; 3) achievement of equity and social justice; 4) provision of social self-
determination and cultural diversity; and 5) maintenance of ecological integrity.”
(International Union for the Conservation of Nature, 1986)14
Although this definition is over 25 years old, the same issues are still relevant today.
Sustainable landscape design usually refers to three aspects: ecological health,
social justice, and economic prosperity. (MEYER, 2008, 6) Unfortunately the role
aesthetics has in sustainability is somehow forgotten, as if how something looks like
and how people react to a landscape does not matter. So much attention is made to
the technical requirements of sustainability, that how one experiences and perceives
a site no longer seems important. Beauty and aesthetics should not only be looked
at on its own terms however, how something looks like and how we relate to it mat-
ters greatly in the way we experience and appreciate something. Aesthetics refers
not just to how something looks but refers to the experience: its reciprocity between
human-beings and the thing that they see. Can aesthetic environmental experiences

14 | Jacobs, P., Gardner, J., Munro, D. A. (1987): Sustainable and Equitable Development, An Emerging Paradigm. In: Conservation
with Equity. Gland, Switzerland: International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, 20
help provoke experiences that causes humans to be more aware of how their ac-
tions affect the environment and to make changes? (MEYER, 2008, 6)
The aesthetic experience is one of exchange, something that is seen, appreciated,

and recognised, able to transform the viewer, perhaps developing an appreciation
for whatever it is that they see.15 It is more than just the act of seeing. Beauty must
be more than just an arbitrary, subjective way of looking at the world. There are be
reasons to why some places are considered to be ‘beautiful’ and other not. How
something looks like can determine how we relate to something and the values we
have. It is also about feelings, memories, senses, and associations with place. The
value of the physical, visual, and spatial components of landscapes can explain the
ethical positions we take in the world and our relationships to another. It can per-
haps even be a prompt to looking at the connections between what we say we care
about and our everyday actions.16 The understanding of aesthetics opens up pos-
sibilities for making connections between the everyday activities of human-beings
and its impact on the natural world, environments, natural resources, and even built 15
work. How we live, see ourselves in the world, where we live, and what we care
about in this world in displayed in the places we establish ourselves. In relation to
postindustrial landscapes, aesthetics play an important role in how we perceive the
site. Is it morally acceptable that because we can turn the ‘ugly back into the beau-
tiful’, should we still be allowed to exploit the landscape?
Landscape art and architecture can play a critical role in changing people’s percep-

tions of the environment. In the discussion of sustainability, land art is not usually
considered. How then does land art fit into the discussion of sustainability? Art has
always been a tool in which aesthetics is used. There is a perceived dialogue be-
tween the observer and the artist allows for a very real interaction. Can art encour-
age the changes necessary in this world, be it political, social, or environmental?
The development and history of land art and public art in general has contributed
to the relationship between public space and landscape architecture. Art installa-
15| Verzone, C. (2007): Terragrams Podcast: Elizabeth Meyer. http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2007/3/1_Eliza-
16 | Verzone, C. (2007): Terragrams Podcast: Elizabeth Meyer. http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2007/3/1_Eliza-
tions have become cultural artefacts, that interact with the urban environment and
in turn become remedial interventions. The creation of art has scientifically relevant,
meaningful, and beneficial impacts on urban life.17 Art in landscapes is public in
its very nature. John Beardsley suggests landscape architecture will prove to be
the most consequential public art of all time. It can be used to serve a number of
functions and provide opportunities for cultural identity, education, self-expression,
community dialogue, transformations of space and place, enhancements to the en-
vironment.18 Public art can provoke change in how people perceive both the mental
and physical environment. It encompasses a vast and multidimensional landscape
typology. Can art be a mediator between cultural aesthetics and ecological func-
tion? This interlinking of ecology, art, and social design can bring a new awareness
to different types of landscapes. There can be a new language in understanding
that the aesthetic experience is just as important in the discussion of sustainability
and how we care for the environment. The landscape serves not only as the ‘foun-
dation for our only “tangible” reality, but as the only mechanism by which we can
really know where we are - and how and why as well’. This understanding is critical
because ‘as humans we have a right to know where we are, how we are connected,
and how we are doing’. (THAYER, 1994, 189)
17, 18 | Verzone, C. (2009): Terragrams Podcast: John Beardsley, http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2009/7/1_John_
hypotheses & aim of work

Land art has influenced the development of landscape architecture in many ways.
The recognition of art is fundamental to landscape design. It can further our under-
standing of nature and landscapes and can be seen as improvements to the land-
scape. Land art can be used as remediation tool for the rejuvenation of postindus-
trial landscapes. Landscape architects and artists are relied upon to come up with
scenarios and techniques, deciding on what needs to be done next in the remedia-
tion process.1 Land art can be one of these techniques used, exploring the dynam-
1 | Verzone, C. (2006): Terragrams Podcast: James Corner, http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2006/3/23_James_
Corner.html
ics of human use versus nature and where the medium of nature can be perhaps
exaggerated. This artistic exploitation of nature can be in fact, however, restorative.
(MEYER, 2008, 17)
Land art is an expression of culture, bringing people’s attention to cultural phenom-

enons that are undervalued or exploited, especially in a society where our depen-
dency on natural resources is staggering. In his book Earthworks and Beyond, John
Beardsley suggests, “People’s relationship to landscape is one of the most signifi-
cant expressions of culture, in many respects equal in importance to the relation-
ship to the sacred”. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 8) Herman Prigann suggests, “Landscapes
as bearing the stamp of culture, and not that notion, full of romantic projections,
that nature is only “the other” – i.e. something that is opposed to culture and urban
conditions ... the beginning and the end of culture is nature, the one immanent in
the other”.2 Therefore, how we express ourselves in the landscape, can also be a
catalyst for change that explores the patterns of change in social, cultural, environ-
mental, and artistic systems. Art installations are cultural artefacts, that interact with 17
the environment, becoming remedial interventions.3 The Geraldton Mine Project can
be considered an example of a way to how this can be accomplished. “The Ger-
aldton Mine project reveals the power of design to remake a wasteland into a new
landscape - a beautiful and powerful earthwork. Even more than an earthwork, this
landform is also a cultural artifact, highlighting the location and role of mining in the
life of the town”.4

Lastly, land art captures the energy and expression of place by raising questions
about the temporal and spatial experiences in landscapes. Landscapes are dynamic
and develop over time. Land art is used as a way to develop experiences within a
landscape so that people can connect with and ultimately care for all aspects of
the world around us. (MEYER, 2008, 18) Elizabeth Meyer argues for a reinstatement
2 | PRIGANN, H. (1998): Thoughts about “Art in Nature”. In: IO Magazine (Environmental Art). Summer 1998. www.helsinki.fi/iiaa/
io/io1998.pdf (01.22.2012)
Beardsley.html
4 | Schwartz, M. (2011): Project Brief. http://www.marthaschwartz.com/projects/tailings_details.html
of aesthetics into the discussion of sustainability. She suggests that the aesthetic
environ can play a vital role in the re-centring of the “human consciousness from an
egocentric to a more bio-centric perspective”. (MEYER, 2008, 6) This understand-
ing is not a new phenomenon. Fredrick Olmstead, the father of landscape archi-
tecture, believed the one’s mental and psychological state can be altered through
the experience of appearance. Beauty, in terms of the physical characteristics and
sensory qualities, can have a “recuperative, transformative power” of the perception
of landscapes. Beauty played an important role in his designs. (MEYER, 2008, 6) As
within the role of land art, the aesthetics of the work, can transform the landscape.
The aim of this thesis is to understand the discussion of aesthetics within frame-
work of cultural, historical, experiential, and ecological aspects of sustainability,
focusing on land art as a tool to achieve this purpose. This thesis will attempt to
take an analytical approach to defining land art’s role in landscape architecture, in
specific how it can be used as a design method to improve and breathe new life
into postindustrial landscapes. Also, this thesis will strive to connect ideas regard-
ing land art, aesthetics, and sustainability in landscapes; the idea of how land art is
being used in the rejuvenation postindustrial landscapes into places of beauty and
wonder.
research questions
1. How can land art be defined in regards to landscape architecture?
2. What role can land art have in the rejuvenation of postindustrial sites?
3. Can land art be discussed in terms of sustainability in the context of postin-
dustrial landscapes? Does land art have the ability to incorporate the cultural,
historical, experiential, and ecological aspects of sustainability?
4. How does land art challenge our understanding and perceptions of waste land-
scapes? How does the aesthetics of land art play a role?
5. Can the MacLeod Tailings Reclamation Project be considered an example of
sustainable land art?
methods
The primary research method undertaken in this thesis is an intensive, multilevel

literature review. Broadly, the literature research will focus primarily on the devel-
opment of land art, in specific earthworks, beginning in the late 1960s to current
trends. A brief review of the history of the land art movement and its advocates is
given. The review also examines the key contributors, both land artists and land-
scape architects, and their respective projects in the fields of environmental art,
earth art, land art, and ecological art. The definitions of land art will be clarified and
expanded upon, providing an understanding of how the field evolved and contrib-
uted to our understanding of art in the landscape. Other general topics such as the
current trends in the reclamation of postindustrial landscapes, cultural landscapes,
vernacular landscapes, sustainability, landscape aesthetics, and perceptions of 19
landscapes are explored.
A more intensive research into the literature regarding specific landscape projects
concerning the incorporation of land art in the reclamation and remediation of
postindustrial landscapes, in specific old mining sites, is discussed in the thesis, for-
mulating the main research objective of the thesis. Precedent projects found within

the literature, are studied and discussed to determine the validity of the research
questions. Numerous theories regarding the aesthetics of landscapes and its abil-
ity to change people’s perceptions of space are investigated, helping to define the
framework of this thesis. Reviewing the history and development of land art and
its relationship to landscape architecture also helps in setting up the supporting
structure for this thesis and to provide a better understanding of how land art has
become an important aspect in exploring various themes in landscape architecture.
The role of environmental aesthetics, sustainability and beauty have a great affect
on the role of environmental art in postindustrial landscapes, in our ability to appre-
ciate these types of sites in a new way.
Along with an intensive literature research and thorough precedent project reviews,
a relatively current landscape architecture / land art (earthwork) project will be in-
vestigated. Martha Schwartz’s MacLeod Tailings Reclamation Project in Geraldton,
Ontario, Canada is a concrete example of the use of land art in the transformation
of postindustrial mining landscapes. The project was completed in 1998 after the
closure of the Barrick Gold mines and now more than a decade later, revisited in an
attempt to determine the success of the reclamation project in its design intent. An
extensive site analysis and site inventory of the project is conducted using a num-
ber of techniques. Conclusions will be drawn regarding whether or not the project
can be considered an example of sustainable land art.
One of the primary purposes of the site analysis and inventory is to better under-
stand and become familiar with the site or project, allowing the possibility to evalu-
ate and determine the site’s character, problems, and potentials. (BOOTH, 1983,
285) Another reason for conducting a site inventory and analysis is to identify key
elements of a site, helping to find the most appropriate design solution for the site
and can often provide defensible reasons in later design phases. During the site
inventory and analysis, there are two distinct phases that should be considered for
every site condition: (1) inventory: identify and record the condition (i.e. data collec-
tion, what and where it is), and (2) analysis: evaluate or make a judgement about the
value and importance of the conditions. (BOOTH, 1983, 285)
The site inventory is an important aspect of the design process. It involves identify-
ing and compiling a complete checklist of the existing conditions of site. Some of
the questions to consider and attempt to answer while conducting a site inventory
include: what is there, where is it located, why is it located here, and how is it dif-
ferent from other features of the site? These questions help to gather information of
the site and to understand why things are the way they are. A site inventory includes
looking at various aspects of the site. These include site location and context,
topography, hydrology and drainage, geology and soil, vegetation, microclimate,
existing buildings, other existing structures, utilities, views / visual character, spaces
and senses, site functions, noise, current use patterns, and significant natural /
man-made features. (BOOTH, 1983, 287) Both man-made and natural elements
are recorded to gather information regarding the site and aid in having a complete,
thorough technical understanding of the site. These observations are important in
determining the value of the site: what is important and what is not important. All the
information collected, helps in the development of a concept for the site. In the case
of a built project, a site inventory can help in understanding the intent and purpose
of the project. It can also aid in determining the successes and failures of the proj-
ect, whether the design intentions were achieved. A site inventory is especially use-
ful in understanding the physical situation of the site. In the case of a built project,
a site inventory can help determine whether the site functions as it should, what it
strengths and weaknesses are, and if any design changes need to be addressed.
In addition to the site inventory, a detailed site analysis of the Geraldton Mine
Project is conducted using various analysis methods. The purpose of the analysis
is to evaluate and make judgments regarding the importance of a particular site 21
condition. The analysis requires experience in knowing the impact of the condi-
tion to a design solution. (BOOTH, 1983, 286) The site analysis allows the viewer to
make informed decisions regarding the character, aesthetics, atmosphere, function,
internal and external site relationships, and general background information of the
project area. The results are documented through various techniques to help portray
and explain the findings. These include written descriptions, photographic docu-

mentation of site, perspective hand sketches, and also through site plans describing
various aspects of the analysis.
Generally, an analysis of the site’s spatial expression and design analysis in relation
to external influences (Räumliche Ausprägung und gestalterisches Analyse - Außen-
beziehungen) includes understanding what type of open space the site is in. Also
important is examining what the viewer see when looking out into the surrounding
landscape? (ILA, 2000, 5) Also, looking the site’s spatial expression and design
analysis in relation to internal influences (Räumliche Ausprägung und gestalterisches
Analyse - Innenbeziehungen) refers to the design of the open spaces, to understand
the spatial requirements, natural conditions of site, vegetation, structure of the
space, function, connections, and usage of the open spaces. (ILA, 2000, 5) How
the site functions in relation to external influences (Funktionale Zusammenhänge -
Außenbeziehungen) is also an important aspect to consider. This refers to looking at
the transportation connections, surrounding building structure and layout, demo-
graphic structure, and other external conditions that may influence the design of the
site. (ILA, 2000, 5)
Lastly, background information of the project area (Hintergrundinformationen zum

Projektgebiet) looks at the context, historical development, social conditions, cli-
mate, and additional planning documentation such as aerial photographs, land-use
zoning plans, development plans, regional pathway plans, etc., that can provide
important information in forming the framework conditions for the design of the site.
(ILA, 2000, 4)
In addition to the typical site inventory and site analysis, a number of associa-
tive spatial analysis methods are used during the investigation on site to provide
an understanding of the personal perception of space. Five locations are chosen
as sample sites for the utilisation of the methods. The different spatial perception
analysis methods tested are described as follows.
Associative spatial perception is a method of analysing the cognitive understanding

of the space you are experiencing. A key method in understanding the spatial con-
text is understanding how the space relates to your senses. The following describes
the process of conducting a sensory spatial analysis known in German as the Sin-
nesbezogene Raumanlyses eines Gestaltelements. (FROHMANN, 2010, AB.1)
The method takes the observer through the different senses, helping to understand
the different spatial situations occurring on site. This method relates to the five
senses or the five methods of perception: hearing, sight, touch, smell, and taste. It
involves experiencing the following senses: Tactile (Tastsinn), Gravitational Pull (Sinn
für die Schwerkraft), Kinaesthetic (Bewegungssinn), Balance (Gleichgewichtssinn),
Temperature (Wärmesinn), Olfactory (Geruchsinn), Gustatory (Geschmacksinn),
Visual (Gesichtssinn), and Auditory (Gehörsinn). Tactile refers to actually touching
the surfaces the different elements with closed eyes. What are the different types
of tactile qualities and surfaces in the site? How are the tactile qualities shown in
the design elements (e.g. tree, ground, coverings, etc.)? Gravitational Pull looks at
perceiving where the space pulls your attention. Where does the space seem to pull
you towards? Is there a radiating centre point? Does the space have one or more
gravitational pull? Kinaesthetic is attributed to which movement patterns define the
spatial situation (movement, spatial form and design, rhythmics, statics, dynam-
ics, etc.). Balance examines the space through the sensation of being balanced or
unbalanced. Is there a feeling of equal or neutral importance of the space? Does the
space generate excitement or calmness? Temperature refers to degree or intensity
of heat present in a substance or object. Is there a warm or cool feeling in the spa-
tial situation? What is the overall temperature? Are there different micro and macro-
climates? Olfactory refers to the perception of smell. Which different smells fill the 23
site (odour, aromas, or fragrance)? Gustatory examines the role of personal taste
associated with the site. Does the space have substance, character, and authentic
feel? Visual observes the site at different vantage points and perspectives. Does the
site appear to be dark or light? Sunny or shady? What types of colour qualities does
the site have? Lastly auditory is how the acoustics of the site is perceived with
closed eyes, through the knocking of different materials and surfaces. Which tones

and sounds can you hear? How do they influence you? Which inner resonances do
the individual components of the site possess? This method allows the observer to
‘tune in’ and realize the sensual qualities of a space. The results can be recorded
either through written description, sketches, or photographic documentation.
(FROHMANN, 2010, A.1)
Other associative spatial analysis techniques attempted during the on-site analy-
sis of the MacLeod Tailings Reclamation Project include the Wöbse Method and
the Hirschfeld Method (landscape character). The methods are described below
Within the Wöbse Method framework, the analysis of the landscape aesthetic at-
tempts to answer which landscape charactistics are spatially dominant and gives
the landscape its typical character (Räumliche Ausprägung and Gestalt der Land-
schaft). (FROHMANN, 2010, 6) Landscape character of the site is examined using
the Hirschfeld Method. Since 1779, Hirschfeld described the different characters of
landscape spaces in relationship to their effect on people. In his theory, Hirschfeld
defines different spatial objects, that through the interaction of certain elements, the
special atmosphere of the place can be generated. Hirschfeld identifies for land-
scape scenes: serene landscapes (heitere Landschaftsszenen), soft-melancholic
landscapes (sanft-melancholische Landschaftsszenen), romantic landscape (roman-
tische Landschaftsszenen), ceremonious landscapes (feierliche Landschaftsszenen).
(FROHMANN, 2010, 9)
All these methods involve the studying the associative perception of space. There
is an active encounter with the landscape in preparing for the framework of an as-
sociative spatial perception of space. The Encounter is a personal experience and
brings about different reactions for each person. The procedure however, remains
the same for each method. The procedure involves: (FROHMANN, 2010, 5)
1. Releasing or letting go of everyday stress and thoughts in order to pre-
pare for contemplativeness and reflection;
2. Tuning into the landscape with a raised attention and concentration,
remaining however, neutral without any preconceived notions or expecta-
tions;
3. Focusing on the perceptions and sensations to the landscape or design
elements bring up, acknowledging the reaction, and recording and ex-
pressing the experience with description words, sketches, etc.;
4. Understanding and analysing the interpretation to the landscape. This
is done in comparison to other places or people experiencing the land-
scape.
In additional to conducting a through analysis of the project, over a period of six

weeks visitor questionnaires are distributed with help of the centre. The question-
naire is mean to gather information of how visitors experience the site. Visitors are
to answer questions regarding their impressions of the landscape, earthwork, etc.
Information gathered through the distribution of questionnaires are not intended to
provide quantitative, statistical results, rather to provide a general impression of the
visitors to the site and the perceptions they have of the project. The results provide
estimations in the quality of the project.
Finally, findings of the literature review, precedent case studies, and the Geraldton
Mine Project are discussed. Conclusions are drawn in determining what role land art
truly has in the remediation of postindustrial landscapes and how in the future land
art can be used and what impacts it has in these types of projects. Through these
methods, the thesis will attempt to answer the hypotheses and research questions
and strive to understand the relationships between land art, landscape architecture
and its role in the rejuvenation of postindustrial landscapes.
25

chapter two: context
the industrial landscape
the industrial age Ill. 4 | (previous page): Exposed coal seams adjacent to
Since perhaps the Industrial Revolution, there has been a fascination with the reclaimed areas, Powder River Basin, Wyoming, USA
industrial landscape. Arguably, the Industrial Revolution marked a major turning

point in the development and history of humankind, promoting significant changes
in the landscape and the way people lived. It was a period from 1750 to 1850 where
changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology
greatly affected the social, economic, and cultural conditions of the time.1 It influ-
enced many aspects of daily living, changing the social class system of the time. A
new landscape developed in response to the concentration of industries and to the
increasing needs of a growing population. The industries required workers, forming
in a sense, a new society, demanding new types of public services and infrastruc-
tures.2 It also spurred new ideas and philosophies, bringing about, among others,
Capitalism, Socialism, Marxism, and Romanticism. Perhaps most interestingly, the
Industrial Revolution changed the human relationship with the earth and with nature.
The landscape changed from an agricultural based society to an industry driven
society, where progress, technology, and a mechanistic view replaced the ideal
of organic nature. Land was seen as a commodity, a place to extract whatever is
needed without much thought of the consequences of this exploitation. (KRINKE,
2001, 126)
As the industry developed, so did an intellectual and artistic discourse towards the
new industrialisation. The Romantic movement stressed the importance of “na-
ture” in art, language and even landscape. The quintessential aesthetic ideas of the
Sublime and Picturesque in nature remained a dominant influence, even though
the ideas had developed to its height of articulation in the eighteenth century.3 The
notion of the Sublime and Picturesque was perhaps in reactions to the industrial
1, 2 | LOURES, L. (2009): (Re)-Developing Post-Industrial Landscapes: Applying Inverted Translational Research Coupled With
the Case Study Research Method. In: City Futures ‘09 Conference Madrid. http://www.cityfutures2009.com/papers_viernes.htm
(04.05.2012)
3 | CARLSON, A. (2010): Environmental Aesthetics, In: ZALTA, E.N. (Ed.)(2010): The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Winter
2010 Edition. http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2010/entries/environmental-aesthetics/.
landscape that was developing at the time. Strong emotional connection is the au-
thentic source of aesthetic experience, especially when confronting the sublimity of
untamed nature or in the similar idea, the industrial.4
Today, industry is separated into four sectors: primary, secondary, tertiary, quater-
nary industry. The primary sector of industry refers to the extraction of resources
directly from the Earth, including agricultural, mining, raw material extraction, and
logging. The secondary sector is manufacturing, involving the processing products
from primary industries. Tertiary involves the provision of services. The fourth sector,
quaternary, consists of the research of science and technology such as research
and development. The extraction and manufacturing process of the primary and
secondary sectors can especially leave marks behind in the landscape. These sec-
tors literally change the face of the landscapes they occupy. For example as with
the mining site, minerals are extracted from the land, leaving behind craters, tailings,
holes in the landscape.
After the industry has finished its useful life cycle, the question of what should be 29
done with the postindustrial landscape remains. According to LOURES5, the neces-
sity of considering the postindustrial landscapes in the landscape planning occurs
when considering the industrial heritage as a resource and as an integral part of
the collective identity of society. Classifying the landscape as industrial implies a
qualitative perception in which territory and industrial infrastructures can be ana-
lyzed from a functional, cultural and historic perspective.6 The industrial landscape
or culture can be described as concept used to describe the ‘remnant’ or leftover

materials of the human process going back to the industrial revolution. Adapting
these industrial relics to a new meaning, production systems, and cultural news,
requires a theoretical basis and practical methodology for the study of these types
of landscapes.7 The idea that industrial landscapes can and should be considered
cultural, lies in understanding that industry plays a large role in shaping and forming
the landscape.
4 | CARLSON, A. (2010): Environmental Aesthetics, In: ZALTA, E.N. (Ed.)(2010): The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Winter
5, 6, 7 | LOURES, L. (2009): (Re)-Developing Post-Industrial Landscapes: Applying Inverted Translational Research Coupled With
the Case Study Research Method. In: City Futures ‘09 Conference Madrid. http://www.cityfutures2009.com/papers_viernes.htm
(04.05.2012)
industry as culture
According to the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation
World Heritage Centre (UNESCO WHC), cultural heritage sites are “works of man
or the combined works of nature and of man, and areas including archaeological
sites which are of Outstanding Universal Value from the historical, aesthetic, eth-
nological or anthropological points of view”. (WHC, 2011, 13) Since 1992, cultural
landscapes are recognised as the significant interactions between people and the
natural environment. These landscapes are “cultural properties and represent the
‘combined works of nature and of man’ ... they are illustrative of the evolution of
human society and settlement over time”. (WHC, 2011, 14) Cultural landscapes
develop through the influence of the physical constraints and/or opportunities of
the natural environment. Social, economic and cultural forces, both external and
internal, also influence the way the landscapes develop over time. Under this under-
standing, industrial landscapes can also then be considered cultural and therefore
justified in a new way of viewing the landscape as something different. The way
humankind interacts and uses the landscape is telling of its cultural values. The atti-
tudes and behavioural characteristics of society is often reflected in the surrounding
environment. Dolores Hayden, an architectural theorist wrote, “Cultural landscapes,
including industrial ones, tell us who we are, far more effectively than most architec-
ture or exhibits in museums ever can”.1
The UNESCO WHC, classifies cultural landscapes into three main categories. The
first, most easily identifiable category, is “landscape designed and created inten-
tionally by man,” communally associated with gardens and park landscapes built
for aesthetic reasons. The second category is the “organically evolved landscape”,
referring to landscapes that have develop into its form either through a relict (or
fossil) landscape or a traditional way of life. The last category is the “associative
cultural landscape,” justifiable through religious, artistic or cultural connections to
the natural element rather than material cultural evidence. (WHC, 2011, 88)
Identifying and defining which landscapes can be deemed cultural, can help in
determining the level of protection necessary. The protection of cultural landscapes
1 | LOURES, L. (2009): (Re)-Developing Post-Industrial Landscapes: Applying Inverted Translational Research Coupled With the Case
Study Research Method. In: City Futures ‘09 Conference Madrid. http://www.cityfutures2009.com/papers_viernes.htm (04.05.2012)
is a reflection of the values held in society. In this sense, if postindustrial landscapes
can be considered cultural, there should also be a certain level of protection of the
postindustrial landscape. According to the UNESCO, the protection of cultural land-
scapes can contribute to modern techniques of sustainable land-use and can main-
tain or enhance natural values in the landscape. (WHC, 2011, 88) Industrial sites are
part of our history and heritage, therefore, efforts should be made to celebrate that.
This is not to say that every industrial landscape is worth protecting however, there
should be a new way of looking at these old sites to determine its true worth.
Allen Carlson, philosopher of environmental aesthetics, states “cultural landscapes:

environments that constitute important places in the cultures and histories of
particular groups of people...sense of place, together with ideas and images from
folklore and mythology, frequently plays a significant role in individuals’ aesthetic ex-
perience of their home environment”. (CARLSON, 2009, 15) The idea that industrial
landscapes can be considered part of the cultural heritage is important as the pres-
ervation and reclamation of these site is more than the celebration of the past but a 31
part of reconstructing the future. As LOURES2 suggests, “industrial heritage pres-
ervation that connects people, place, and history fosters a sense of place and the
power for community renewal”. The question remains if this definition of the cultural
landscape, can and should be, expanded to include the primary industry landscape,
such as the agricultural fields and mining landscapes.
The argument that mining sites should be included in the definition of cultural land-
scapes, is to say that without these sites, society would not enjoy the things we take

for granted. In that sense, mines should be included. Mining refers to the process
of extraction of any valuable mineral or other geological material from the earth’s
surface. The process of mining can change the landscape in a number of ways. It
degrades and literally leave scars on a landscape. (KRINKE, 2001, 126) New land-
scapes are formed in areas, sometimes far from urban reality. This however, does
not or should not mean that these sites are any less important to consider.
2 | LOURES, L. (2009): (Re)-Developing Post-Industrial Landscapes: Applying Inverted Translational Research Coupled With the Case
Study Research Method. In: City Futures ‘09 Conference Madrid. http://www.cityfutures2009.com/papers_viernes.htm (04.05.2012)
the postindustrial site
The postindustrial site is becoming more relevant as our reliance on natural re-
sources continue to increase. What is however meant by a postindustrial site? A
postindustrial site refers to any industrial area where its initial function and use (be
that agriculture, mining, logging, manufacturing) no longer is active. It is understood
that the sites which were formerly used for industrial activity, no longer have a use
and must be reclaimed to provide other uses of the site. These sites can include
disused quarries, canals, railway lines, mines, buildings, warehouses, etc., and can
be found in rural, suburban, and urban contexts. Often abandoned and left to their
own devices, these sites are arguably the result of human current and former land
uses and (ab)use of limited resources.1 Society has inherited these ‘idled, derelict
and frequently abandoned postindustrial structures and sites’ and the question
remains, what is than to become of these sites?2 Already in the 1960s, the ques-
tion of reusing these old industry sites became quite relevant. The renewal of these
sites not only need to deal with economically and environmentally degraded land-
scape, but these sites have varying degrees of contaminations. Surprisingly, often
the abandoned, derelict industrial sites are already ecologically rich. Regenerating
vegetations and habitats manage to surprisingly take root in a seemingly hostile
environment. (HOUGH, 2001, xiii)
Industry lands are products of human intervention and interaction in the landscape.
Therefore, the idea that industrial landscapes are a product of cultural ideals is not
far-fetched. It is then logical to assume in effect, society at large that must deter-
mine their future uses, and how best to restore and integrate these sites back into
the community. (HOUGH, 2001, xiii) These ‘industrial artifacts’ have the ability to
provide indications to the site’s history and inherent sense of place. (HOUGH, 2001,
xiii) LOURES3 suggests, when analysing and reclaiming these types of sites, land-
scape architects, engineers, architects, designers and other planning profession-
als must realise that postindustrial is already part of a context rich in history and
cultural. The postindustrial ‘representing multiple layers of time and cultural activity
1, 2, 3 | LOURES, L., BURLEY, M. (2012): Post-Industrial Land Transformation: An Approach to Sociocultural Aspects as Catalysts
for Urban Redevelopment. http://www.intechopen.com/books/advances-in-spatial-planning/post-industrial-land-transformation-an-
approach-to-socio-cultural-aspects-as-catalysts-for-urban-red. (03.24.2012)
therefore being part of the identity of a people and a place”, is already part of the
vernacular landscape.4
Further, LOURES5 proposes that these landscapes can be seen as assets, given
that they are often quite unique, resulting from the combination of natural landforms
and buildings that define a particular place or region. Reclaiming postindustrial land-
scapes offer unique opportunities, not only because of their location, proximity with
infrastructure, uniqueness in form and configuration, but also because they became
often the only lands available for development in urban areas. (MEYER, 2000, 190)
New approaches and perspectives towards these derelict landscapes, embrace
the notion that postindustrial landscapes offer unique opportunities in the creation
of renewed landscapes. The sites are more than just ecological and environmental
reclamation opportunities, they also contain social, cultural, and economic values.6
Thayer suggests that our ‘sense of dissonance’ regarding the impacts human activi-
ties on the landscape or ‘environmental guilt’, may increase as we attempt to look
for new ways to regenerate the postindustrial landscape: “the colliding tendencies 33
towards simulation on the one hand and sustainability on the other will be the domi-
nant tension affecting the landscape for some years to come”. (THAYER, 1994, 198)
4, 5, 6 | LOURES, L., BURLEY, M. (2012): Post-Industrial Land Transformation: An Approach to Sociocultural Aspects as Catalysts for
Urban Redevelopment. In: BURIAN, J. (Ed.) Advances in Spatial Planning. http://www.intechopen.com/books/advances-in-spatial-
planning/post-industrial-land-transformation-an-approach-to-socio-cultural-aspects-as-catalysts-for-urban-red. (03.24.2012)
reclaiming the landscape

Over the years, there have been many design approaches towards the reclamation

of postindustrial landscapes. The decisions regarding what is to remain and what is
to be removed in the transformation of these sites are important. What happens to
the leftover site material, tailings, structures, utilities, etc.? Questions involving the
importation, recycling or removal are fundamental in deciding what the reclaimed
landscape is to be, especially when considering the possibilities of celebrating the
history and contemporary framework of the site. (KIRKWOOD, 2001, 123)
There are different approaches to recovering a waste site. The methods usu-
ally involve identifying the various specific site conditions, legal requirements that
need to be met, but also incorporating the vision of designer. The final design and
form of the recovered landscape might be the integration of the site, visually and
ecologically, within the surrounding context. One approach or goal may be more
ecological in intent, to restore the function of a healthy ecosystem. Against all odds,
nature usually finds a way to reestablish itself, even in the most adverse conditions.
Instead of leaving a wasteland on its own, the design deliberately engages with
the site, bringing back proper ecological function to the site. (KRINKE, 2001, 126)
Another approach is perhaps more artistic or creative, where the design intent of the
reclamation is to “recover the landscape with the intention of clearly revealing the
hand of the designer, underscoring human intervention on the site”. (KRINKE, 2001,
126) It is not always the goal of the designer to return a damaged landscape back
to its original ‘natural’ form. Some argue that this is not even possible, therefore why
attempt to hide what the landscape has become.
What is then required to create a successful, sustainable reclaimed landscape?

According LOURES and PANAGOPOULOS (2007, 793), one of the keys is to
understand the historic and cultural impact on the landscape and to interpret this
significance in a way suitable to the site. James CORNER (1996, 82) suggests
understanding the context and layers of the site can lead to the invention of new so-
lutions. The “landscape ecology and design can invent alternative forms of relation-
ships between people, place, and cosmos so that landscape architectural projects
become more about invention and programs rather merely corrective measures of
restoration”. The discussion of sustainability cannot be ignored when speaking of
good design in reclaiming landscapes. Punter outlines five fundamental principles
for landscape reclamation design projects. Successful, sustainable projects should
integrate these five criterions: protect and conserve quality landscapes; develop
a clear vision and strategy for an area; apply collaborative design principles; allow
resources for long-term aftercare of new landscapes; enhance biodiversity, social
stability and economic development. (in LOURES, 2007, 793) LOURES suggests
three strategies in landscape reclamation projects: heritage strategy, environmental
strategy, and socio-cultural design strategy. Each strategy takes a different vantage
point where to begin but in the end, attempt to create sustainable reclaimed land-
scapes, that stay true to the context of the site. “Even derelict and degraded indus-
trial areas can be filled with a new spirit and can be made worth living by keeping
visible the spirit of existing site, by applying design strategies that contribute to eco-
nomic prosperity, social cohesion and environmental quality”. (LOURES, 2007, 794)
The reclamation of a site that has been damaged and/or outlived its original use
and purpose is not a new concept. (KRINKE, 2001, 130) There are many precedents
in history showing different attempts and approaches in dealing with old industrial
landscapes. Even the idea however, that art can be used as a tool in reclaiming
industrial landscapes after its ‘usefulness’ or production has ceased, has inter-
ested artists, philosophers, even landscape architects since perhaps the industrial
revolution. Land art and the reclamation of landscapes are intricately connections.
BEARDSLEY (2006, 11) suggests that the contemporary artists who look to improve
the environment through land reclamation projects or through creating parks, actu-
ally inherited the ‘reformists spirit of the mid nineteenth century’. These projects
have a wide range of intentions. Projects that intend to be ‘deliberately historicist’
or so ‘discreet in form or utilitarian in function that they remain unrecognised as art’.
(BEARDSLEY, 2006, 11) Perhaps only because the land art movement was initially 35
established by, among others, Robert Smithson. Smithson was inspired greatly by
the industrial and the role artists can have in its reclamation. Landscape reclamation
projects provide opportunities connect the postindustrial landscape to the place
and to the society. Since the emergence of Land Art, the ‘devastated landscape’
of the industrial society, like quarries, mines, etc. is considered a preferred site for
avant-garde landscape art. (WEILACHER, 1996, 28)
This idea of using landscape art in reclamation projects was, until recently, a rela-

tively rare phenomenon in Europe. The ‘American type of Land Art’ used in reclaim-
ing disused quarries and gravel pits, was not really seen in Europe because of
industries preference to using their own ‘specialist’ in cleaning up the sites and pol-
lution. However, as the economic and political landscape in Europe (and internation-
ally) began to change, especially in Germany, landscape art’s role began to increase,
developing new perspectives to a ‘changed awareness and modern approach’ in
dealing with ‘devastated landscapes’. (WEILACHER, 1996, 29) With the help of
landscape art, this new interpretation of the “disrupted” or postindustrial landscape
might be achieved. (WEILACHER, 1996, 30)
the land art ideal
the land art movement

Land Art is a variable, complex, even overused term, used to cover a wide range
of artistic interventions, works, ideas, and attitudes towards nature and the land.
(KASTNER, 1998, 12) It has become a term associated with mainstream public
art. Unfortunately also, many works misuse the term to label any type of art found
in nature, even if the work is not conceptually related to the avant-garde works of
pioneer land artists. “Land art is now all too often uncritically applied to virtually any
kind of design in public space which appears to have artistic qualities, irrespective
of the meaning it conveys”. (WEILACHER, 1996, 9) Art in landscape is public in its
very nature because the works are sited outdoors. This is not to say that all land art
is actually accessible to the public. Land art itself is often considered as a prec-
edent for public art today. However, the artists of the 1960s and 70s did not always
aim to make their work accessible and positioned their work in remote sites, result-
ing in audiences of dedicated specialists. (RENDELL, 2006, 37)
Land art, earth art, earthworks, environmental art, and site-specific art are all terms
often used interchangeably to describe the end product of an art movement that
began in the late 1960s. Land art is among ‘the most complex and fascinating of
these artistic responses to the earth”. (KASTNER, 1998, 11) It was a reaction to the
perceived artificiality, plastic aesthetics, and ruthless commercialisation of art that
was happening in America during that time. Land art is inseparable from its context
and intended as a critique of the gallery system and the role of art as commodity.
(RENDELL, 2006, 24) It was inspired by minimal art and conceptual art and rejected
the idea of museum and gallery as the setting for artistic forum and attempted to
move art beyond the reach of the traditional concept of art. (WEILACHER, 1996, 12)
The art moved to the land, not merely placed in the landscape, but rather the land-
scape itself as means of the creation. The landscape and the materials it contained,
serves as the raw materials for the construction of mainly sculptural works in nature.
Conceptual artists like Robert Smithson, Robert Morris, Alan Sonfist, Michael
Heizer, Dennis Oppenheim, Walter De Maria, Nancy Holt, and others were disillu-
sioned with the ‘modernist endgame’ and consciously wanted to break away from
the constraints of the ‘art gallery’. (KASTNER, 1998, 11) The artists attempted to
remove themselves from the concept of the art gallery, to explore the language and
metaphor in the more ‘unbounded terrain of land and landscape’. (PARSY, 2000,
30) The early land artists wanted to explore new ideas and relationships with nature,
different from the traditional sense of nature being taken up as subject matter in art.
Artists made nature the very setting for their work, whether if “from a desire for con-
templative withdrawal, as a result of romantic abandonment or in an effort to escape
the pressures of urban life”. (PARSY, 2000, 30)
Land art arguably began with Robert Smithson, who many considered the founder
of the movement. (refer to artist biography page 74) In October 1968, Smithson 37
organised an art exhibit named ‘Earthworks’ in New York, showcasing large-scale
outdoor works done by fourteen artist. The show delivered “a pointedly pessimistic
comment on the current state of America’s environment and its future”. (WALLIS,
1998, 23) Artists attempted to create works that could not be found in a gallery
or easily placed in a collector’s home. Nature was chosen as a medium to create
monumental pieces emerged as a protest against traditional forms of art. Smith-
son’s desire to ‘return to the origins of materials’ held on site, including the other

previously mentioned land artists such as Heizer, Holt, Morris, etc. Works resulted in
large scale interventions in the landscape often involving moving massive quantities
of nature material. (RENDELL, 2006, 23) However, this return to realism is to be seen
not as a deliberate return to the past faced with the modernist movement which set
out to be free of it, but as a desire to perceive differently, and experiment afresh, our
relationship with our surroundings; hence the wide range of land art sites away from
traditional artistic settings. (PARSY, 2000, 30)
It is not a coincidence that the land art movement emerged at the time it did. It
seemingly sprung from a “mid 1960s art world that was seeking to break with the
cult of personalized, transcendental expression embodied in American post-war
abstraction”. (KASTNER, 1998, 12) The 1960s was a time of great change in the
United States and the rest of the world. There was a dissatisfaction with the politi-
cal, social, and economical landscape at the time. Art critic Barbara Rose wrote in
1969 that the dissatisfaction resulted in ‘an unwillingness to produce commodities
which gratify and perpetuate the system ... here the sphere of ethics and aesthetics
merge’. (KASTNER, 1998, 13) According to Kastner, Rose’s ‘anti-canonical aesthetic
programme’ provided a point of reference for the examining the Land Art phenom-
enon, encouraging the ‘intensely political art form’ in the landscape, challenging the
social orthodoxy of the period. This time of sociological revolution, political emanci-
pation, spiritual regeneration, sexual liberation, alternative lifestyles, etc., gave ‘birth
of a generalized concept of revolution’ which ultimately leaving in its wake, one
artistic movement after another, few however, were so ‘fully-formed and dramatic as
Land Art’. (KASTNER, 1998, 13)
The work of these early artists shared the idea that, ‘sculptural gestures’ can be tak-
en away from institutions and into ‘real, variable, organic locations’. Beardsley and
others have pointed out continuities between the aesthetics of English eighteenth-
century Picturesque tradition and the work of land artists. (HOWETT, 1985, 58)
The socio-cultural atmosphere of the time, seemed to greatly influence the artists.
(KASTNER, 1998, 13) Apart from the term land art, what tied land artists together
was their desire to work on site, to choose a spot where they could leave their mark
at whatever scale and for however long they decided, without having to determine
in advance how their works was to be viewed. (PARSY, 2000, 30)
Land art can be traced to many artistic movements of the twentieth century. These
genres include minimalism, postminimalism, public art, conceptual art, process
art, interventions, happenings, the ‘Arte Povera’ movement, and installation art.
(BRADY, 2007, 258) According to Malcolm Andrews, land art also found it roots in
gardening, landscape design, and other human modifications of the environment.
Robert Smithson pointed to the similarities in characteristics between his earth-
works and the earthworks of Olmstead’s Central Park in New York. (BRADY, 2007,
258) Andrew suggests that his work can also be compared to the much earlier
earthworks of Picturesque gardens in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and
even further to the ancient artistic and ritualistic earthworks such as land drawings,
megaliths, and mounds. (ANDREWS, 1999)
Over the last thirty years, the movement has grown to encompass a wide collections
of forms, approaches, and theoretical positions. (KASTNER, 1998, 12) Artists that
followed the early contributors to the land art movement, continued in the explore
the to use of both natural and human-made materials in leaving behind marks within
both the topographical and psychological landscape. These artists used nature, not
Ill.5 | (above): A Line Made By Walking, Richard Long, England to reveal its beauty and evoke emotions but rather to dig, mark, plot, and transform.
1967 | example of an ephemeral intervention
(PARSY, 2000, 30) They also continued to challenge assumptions about the social
Ill.6 | (below): Cancelled Crop, Dennis Oppenheim, Finister- and political role of art especially in the public sphere, and explored the connections 39
wolde, Holland, 1969 | example of sculptural earthwork
of the individual, community, nature, and language.1 Land art is therefore more the
result of different intellectual, sociological, and artistic paths than an aesthetic mani-
festo. The only thing the paths have in common is their medium nature. (PARSY,
2000, 30) The movement’s emphasis on site-specific, outdoor works intended to
alter our perception of places, and to set new parameters in art production and
reception. (LAILACH, 2007, 11)
Andrews suggests that there is a large range of projects that can be considered as

land art. Within the framework of land art and earth art, Andrews (1999, 205) out-
lines the following:
1. Minimal and ephemeral interventions directly in a site, including works by
atists such as Richard Long, Andy Goldsworthy, Michael Singer;
2. Large-scale sculptural earthworks on site, such as projects by Michael Heizer,
Robert Smithson, Dennis Oppenheim;
1 | UMBANHOWAR, E. (?): Public Art: Linking Form, Function and Meaning. http://depts.washington.edu/open2100/pdf/2_OpenS-
paceTypes/Open_Space_Types/public_art.pdf (03.01.2012).
3. Unmediated art gallery installations that use materials collected directly from
site. This includes works by Walter De Maria and early Smithson;
4. Landscape reclamation or ‘planned naturalization’ of industrial sites, such as
projects by Smithson, Michael Heizer, Robert Morris;
5. Works of ‘conservation of natural land’ involving making decisions about
what traditional usages of the land are retained, by artists like Alan Sonfist
and Agnes Denes.
Ironically, the permanence of many earthworks is itself threatened due to its vulner-
ability in the landscape. Arguably one of the most iconic interventions in the United
States is Robert Smithson’s Spiral Jetty, built in 1970. It is a spiral constructed from
basalt rock and earth jutting into the Great Salt Lake in Utah from its northeastern
shore. Discussed in further in detail later in the thesis, the entropic nature, exposure
Ill. 7 | (above): Non-site, Robert Smithson, Palisades-Edge-
to the elements, and other considerations, leave the work to its own demise. Far water, New Jersey, USA, 1968 | example of unmediated art
from wanting to halt the passage of time, they signal a remarkable break with tradi- gallery installation
tion by accepting its consequences: deterioration and obliteration. (PARSY, 2000,

31) The element of time and temporality due to the works exposure to the elements,
add an interesting dimension to the works. How the work change over time, speak
to the changing relationships of humankind to the environment.
The human relationship to the landscape is complex and at times difficult to under-
stand. There are contradictions everywhere to how it is we live in the landscape. At
times humankind, exploits and plunders the land and there are other times where
we find safety in its seemingly unchanging permeance. “The only thing we have to
preserve nature with is culture: the only we have to preserve wildness with is do-
Ill. 8 | (above): Water Strider, Effigy Tumuli Sculptures, Michael
mesticity.” The best land or environmental art highlights this contradictions, probing Heizer, Buffalo Rock, Illinois, USA | example of landscape
reclamation
the limits of artistic activity with the limitless tools of the artistic imagination. (KAST-
Ill. 9 | (below): Time Landscape, Alan Sonfist, New York City,
NER, 1998, 17) USA | example of ‘conservation of natural land’
environmental art
The concepts and philosophies behind earthworks and land art movement eventu-
ally developed further into the environmental art movement. The two terms are still
closely related however, according to Campbell, “the changing name for this new
genre charts its shifting focus, from earthworks which describes the early, inchoate
sculpting of earth, through land art which bestows artistic credibility on the enter-
prise, to environmental art, which emphasizes the ideological motive”. (CAMPBELL,
2006, 120)
As with land art, defining environmental art is just as complex. The range of artists
who define their work as ‘environmental’ comprises a broad category. Environmen-
tal art developed as the land art movement continued to evolve from its beginning
and as the concept of environmentalism increased in awareness and popularity. The
environmental artist “turned back to the terrain, but this time with an activity meant
to remedy damage rather than poeticize it”. (KASTNER, 1998, 17) The definition is
continually adapting, growing, changing as our relationship with the natural world
and the environment changes. Generally, it is art that improves our understanding 41
of our relationship with the natural world. The art can be very much ephemeral or
designed site-specific and can involve collaborations between the artist and other
professionals such as landscape architects, community groups, ecologists, etc.1
Artist Lynne HULL2, in an essay she wrote for the online compilation GreenMuseum,
describes the contemporary definitions of the goals and objectives of environmental
art in four different ways. Environmental art can:

1. interpret nature by creating artworks that inform about nature and its pro-
cesses, and/or about environmental problems;
2. concern itself with the environmental forces and materials, creating art-
works affected or powered by wind, water, lightning, even earthquakes;
3. re-envision human relationship to nature, proposing new ways for people
to co-exist with the environment; and
4. reclaim and remediate damaged environments, restoring ecosystems in
artistic and often aesthetic ways.
1, 2 | HULL, L. (2010): What is Environmental Art?. GreenMuseum Online Museum: http://greenmuseum.org/what_is_ea.php

(05.20.2012)
Kastner in his book, Land and Environmental Art, organises the various underlying
characteristics of environmental art works further into five different themes: integra-
tion, interruption, involvement, implementation, and imagining.
Integration refers to works of art in the landscape that, “manipulate the landscape
as a material in its own right..and draws out the relationship between the existing
characteristics of a site and evidence of human intervention.” Local natural materi-
als are added, removed, or displaced by artists creating form with emphasis on
materiality, elemental geometries, and the siting of the work. The works are often
monumental in scale and imitate the spatial expanses they occupy. (KASTNER,
1998, 45) Kastner includes works by artists such as Robert Smithson, Michael
Heizer, Joseph Beuys, James Turrell in this category. One example of work within
this category, is Heizer’s Double Negative, which shows the connection between
sculpture and architecture, and the ‘direct physical experience of our bodies’ in
relationship to the landscape. (KASTNER, 1998, 54)
Interruption are projects that combined the environment and human activity, us-
ing man-made or manufactured materials, substances, and structures. The works
question the very notion of ‘natural’ and the kind of terrestrial exploitation due to
Ill.10 | (above): Double Negative, Michael Heizer, Overton,
industrial and urban development. The works attempt to question and criticise the Nevada, USA, 1969-70
‘terrestrial exploitation’ by interrupting the landscape. (KASTNER, 1998, 72) Kastner
places artists like Nancy Holt, Christo and Jeanne-Claude, Carl Andre, Dennis Op- Ill.11 | (below): Running Fence, Christo and Jeanne-Claude,
Sonoma & Marin Counties, California, USA, 1972-76
penheim within this framework. Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s Running Fence literally
created an artificial barrier through the landscape but at the same time connected
the land, sea, and sky surrounding the work. The work spoke to the ‘arbitrary nature
of political and geographical boundaries’. (KASTNER, 1998, 72)
Involvement are works that look at the individual relationship with the land. They
tend to be small in scale, in relationship to the human form. It is slightly in reaction
to earlier land art monuments, emphasising on primal, symbolic link to earth, creat-
ing ‘contemporary forms of rituals’. The artists used their own body for scale and to
create the work in the landscape. Within this category, artists like Walter De Maria,
Richard Long, and Kazuo Shiraga experimented different methods of exploration.
(KASTNER, 1998, 114) De Maria’s Mile Long Drawing is composed of two parallet
chalk lines drawn at a scale of the human body on dry desert lake bed. The work
was of course destroyed. (KASTNER, 1998, 114)
Implementation projects not only used the formal, aesthetic ideas of land art but
initiated the understanding of the environment as ecosystem and depository of
socio-political realities. Nature cannot only be seen as a blank canvas or an infinitely
exploitable resource, but as dynamic, interactive system. The works showed “hu-
man relations with the natural environment are based not only on perception and
pleasure, but also exploitation, waste and destruction”. The artists present response
that, “combine incisive critique with practical and redemptive strategies which can
Ill.12 | (above): Mile Long Drawing, Walter De Maria, be effected by the individual”. (KASTNER, 1998, 136) Artists within this category
Mojave Desert, California, USA, 1968 include Robert Morris, Joseph Beuys, Alan Sonfist, and Agnes Denes. Beuys’ 7,000
Ill.13 | (below): 7,000 Oaks, Joseph Beuys, Kassel, Oaks work literally involved the planting of 7000 oak trees in Kassel. The work
Germany, 1982
embodied the cocept of how ecology grows over time and the tranformation poten-
tial of a ‘social sculpture’, using an activity of planting to change ideas. (KASTNER, 43
1998, 145)
Imagining refers to artists who see the land as a metaphor or signifier, not as some-
thing physical. The landscape is understood as a concept with a historical narrative
that provides symbology that can be used to describe contemporary society and
ultimately culture. (KASTNER, 1998, 174) Kastner includes works by Ian Hamilton
Finlay, Jan Dibbets, and John Baldessari within this category. Finlay’s Little Sparta

sculptural garden is an example of how the ‘garden poem’ is sited within an ‘area’,
defining the relationship between the objects of the poems and their surroundings.
Ill.14 | (below): Little Sparta, Ian Hamilton Finaly, near
Edinburgh, Scotland, 1983 The discourse between environmental art and environmentalism has increased over
the last quarter century and not just contained within the art world. Environmen-
talism shifted from a side issue to a central theme in cultural consciousness and
political debate and also influenced landscape architecture projects. (MEYER, 2000,
187) The “post-environmental movement landscape involves the search for signifi-
cant forms and spaces that might embody, reveal, and express ecological prin-
ciples while embodying and inculcating environmental values”, resulting in projects
interested in the environmental experience. (MEYER, 2000, 188) The cultural critic
Andreas Huyssen, regards the critical postmodern reconsideration of modern art
and culture as being filtered through a new lens of ecological environmentalism.
(MEYER, 2000, 188)
According the MEYER (2000, 189), there are two models that developed out of the
environmental movement. The first model emerged from the writings and teach-
ings of educators like Ian McHarg. Environmental or ecological design looked to
structure the pre-conceptual phase of the design process into a scientific method.
The second approach was to consider landscape architecture as art. This model
emerged from the teaching of educators such as Peter Walker out of concern that
the design process had become in a sense to scientific. The ‘art of making the
landscape visible, beautiful, and memorable had been made subservient to the
landscape’s function’ and replaced with ecological, social, and behavioural analyses
of the site, losing its sense of place. (MEYER, 2000, 189)
The look towards environmental art, at the same science, ecology, and theories of
site specificity was critical to the successful integration of environmentalism into
landscape architectural design. This integration of environmentalism and ecological
concerns as cultural as much as scientific concerns and needed to be addressed
in landscape architecture. (MEYER, 2000, 191) Designers created landscapes that
operated as “focusing lenses for knowing the natural world, that instigated aesthetic
experiences that reduced barriers between humans and the natural world, and
that functioned as physical catalysts for changing social rituals affecting the natu-
ral world”. (MEYER, 2000, 191) The question however remains, why use art at all?
Environmental art can help us develop more than just a ‘superficial attachment’ of
aesthetic appreciation of the environment. Our relationship to nature is developed
through many ways. Environmental aesthetics philosopher, Emily BRADY (2001, 26)
suggests that environmental art can help us develop attachments to the environ-
mental that are deeply rooted and long lasting, by forcing us to engage with nature
in demanding ways. Brady states, “whether through art in the land or by giving us
creations which challenge the very distinction between art and nature”. (BRADY,
2001, 26) The idea that art, as with landscape architecture can promote a new of
experiencing a landscape and ultimately forms a new understanding of environment.
land art + landscape architecture

More than 10 years after his book, Between Landscape Architecture and Land Art,
Udo WEILACHER (2008, 1) poses the question, “does an examination of landscape
art open up new avenues for landscape architecture to overcome the serious crisis
in human perception or does the subjective approach of art only lead to an aes-
theticising impasse?” It is an interesting aspect to consider. The discussion of land
art is fundamentally convoluted. The term itself over the years is applied to any art
installation found in the outdoors. The distinction between what is land art, art, and
even landscape architecture is at times obscure. Does that mean that land art has
become the go to design for landscape architecture?
The relationship between land art and landscape architecture is a complex rela-
tionship. Both have to do with our perception to the land, how we see ourselves
45
in the landscape, and our reactions to the changing nature that is landscapes.
John Dixon HUNT (1996, 6) says, “We cannot understand the appeal of Land Art
to contemporary landscape architecture without first registering how diverse, not
to say fractured, that profession currently is”. To really understand how land art
has influenced landscape architecture, one must be able to first define landscape
architecture. Perhaps that is part of the problem. Maybe it is not possible to define
land art in relationship to landscape architecture. Landscape architecture is possibly

a profession that cannot be so simply defined because its disregard of conceptual
concerns. (HUNT, 1996, 6) It spreads itself across a wide range of human territories,
jeopardizing any sense of coherence, of spread energies, that a lack of attention is
paid to theory. Is that part of the problem?
The idea that land art has influenced the development of landscape architecture
greatly has been discussed over the last decades ever since the land art movement
began in the 1960s as a way to express oneself in the landscape. It is only natural
that the two professions have found a way to each other and influenced the prac-
tice of landscape architecture. It is also no accident that land art has become over
the years, the “go to design” and used broadly as a term that its true meaning has
begun to lose its intention and meaning. Many elements in the landscape, even
those which cannot be called land art, are being called land art. It is unfortunate that
distinctions between what is and what isn’t land art hasn’t been clarified. It is the
age old question of what is art.
Landscape architects are perhaps hesitant to associate themselves as artists. The

idea that if associated with an art, the worth, professionalism of landscape architec-
ture will be put in question. If landscape architecture is considered only to be an art
form, than it is something that can be easily dismissed as something not necessary.
Landscape architecture may, at times, attempt to fill too many roles. It is a profes-
sion that perhaps struggles with identity. The ability to define exactly what it is land-
scape architects do leads to the risk of spreading itself thin. HUNT (1996, 6) states
“contemporary landscape architecture is very diverse ... spreading itself across a
wonderfully wide range of human territories, seems doomed to lose its sense of
coherence(s), of shared energies because of the failure to attend to any conceptual
concerns”. These, sometimes, conflicting views of what landscape architecture
and where the arts fit into the profession, create a sense of ‘unease ... professional
unease is the fear of art, an anxiety that human ingenuity may jeopardise the earth’s
unique equilibria for stewardship over which modern landscape architects take par-
ticular pride: the old opposition of science versus art’. (HUNT, 1996, 6)
According to HUNT (1996, 6), perhaps one of the key contributions land art has
made in the discourse of landscape architecture is its ability to ‘restore to land-
scape architecture its old and largely lost concern for the intricate melding of site,
sight and insight’. Land art has the ability to respond to the landscape and bring
about ideas of art and design, even inspiration. Land art’s great appeal to landscape
architecture rests upon other foundations, above all its emphasis on process, its in-
vocation of abstraction and its confidence in its own artistry’. (HUNT, 1996, 6) Hunt
goes on further to suggest that fundamental, underlying goals in land art can bring
us closer to understanding and recognising our role in nature. Land art, especially in
conjunction with postindustrial, experiments with ideas of temporality and entropy.
Interventions in both land art and landscape architecture uses materials that grow
and also eventually decay. Like some land art, landscape architecture attempts to
distinguish itself from other disciplines through underlying the temporal process.
The intersection of land art and landscape architecture function in a number of fash-
ions. The understanding of how “place intersects with time and temporality, how
ideas haunt cultural appropriations of land, and how the representation of land as
art is fundamental ambition of all landscape architecture”. (HUNT, 1996, 7)
Robert Smithson was one of the first artists to realise the practical role ‘earth art’
could have in reclaiming landscapes devastated through mining or other industrial
activities. “Art can become a physical resource,” he argued, “that mediates between
the ecologist and the industrialist”. (HOWETT, 1985, 53) These reclamation works
can considered to lie somewhere between land art and landscape architecture,
displaying “Smithson’s interest in artworks that could regenerate postindustrial 47
landscapes and Morris’s discussion of ‘land reclamation as sculpture”. (RENDELL,
2006, 37) Not only have land artists moved into the realm of landscape architecture,
the same can be said for landscape architects experimented with the use of art in
their projects. Artists entered the traditional domain of the landscape architect, as
they looked for opportunities to create both functional and aesthetic public art. As
previously mentioned, Beardsley believes landscape architecture will prove to be
the most consequential public art of all time. Perhaps because of the overlapping of

the disciplines. Landscape architects have looked to the imaginative challenges of
environmental art. At the same time, artists have to some degree moved in the di-
rection of more accessible, functional, and collaborative site-specific art. (HOWETT,
1985, 56) Despite these overlays, can landscape architecture really make a place
for art in its designs? Marc TREIB (1981, 446) suggests, that the inclusion of art can
offer richer experiential rewards in the project. Art can increase both ‘scope and
refinement ... transforming and transcending the requirements of the mundane and
programmatic solutions”. Catherine Howett, in her article Landscape Architecture:
Making a Place for Art, states,
“Art alone, after all, can make those new places meaningful and memorable.
Art alone can restore to our culture’s sensibility the most ancient of the meta-
phors of place-making, the metaphor of the garden-not as a perfected Eden
but as a place revealed in process; the sacred space, the place of growth,
of beauty, of sensual pleasure; the place of mystery, trial and transformation,
transfigured life and death”. (HOWETT, 1985, 59)
However, perhaps the greatest influences of land art in general to the development
of the modern landscape language, is describe by Weilacher in his essay written in
Stavanger in 2008. In his opinion there were three typical features of Land Art and
Art in Nature. The Land Art movement was a return to the ‘concentration on the
essential’ in reaction to the overbearing commercialism of the designs of that time.
Land Art became this ‘fascinating dialogue between the very complex, sometimes
even chaotic forces of nature and the clear geometric structure of the artifact.’ Even
today, many artists and landscape architects strive to achieve ‘expressive simplic-
ity’, in terms of reduction to primary, archetypal forms, in the core of their work.
(WEILACHER, 2008, 2)
The ‘transience of its works’ is the second influence of Land Art. WEILACHER
(2008, 2) believes that art in the landscape connects various principle ideas with the
characteristics of transience; lasting only for a short time. Transience is seen here as
a ‘visual expression of the process of time’, understanding the role of decay in the
natural cycle of life. Unfortunately little attention in paid to transience in landscape
design despite its fundamental, creative significance. Instead striving towards the
man-made ideals of nature and landscape.
Thirdly, there is the romantic component to Land Art. WEILACHER (2008, 2) sug-
gests that the “creation of a place of meaning and the heightening of perceptibility
is not possible without the revival of certain romantic elements” and that removing
the romantic notion from landscape design could led to the essential qualities of the
landscape and the environment disappearing.
Elizabeth K. MEYER (2000, 198) suggests that the most powerful influences on
landscape architects attempting to bridge ecological environmentalism and design
expression were the artists known as environmental artists, earth artists, or site
artists. Why did theses artists resonate so powerfully with landscape architects?
Land artists like Smithson and Irwin concentrated on observing specific phenomena
and processes of a particular place, paying attention to its particular qualities. They
began their works understanding the experience at the human scale and through
their interventions, seeking to reveal the ‘long-term processes that formed such a
place and enabled such an experience’. (MEYER, 2000, 198) The apparent invisible
qualities of the place, like its ancient natural histories, time, recurring natural cycles
and processes, were revealed in the works, as a statement to the design culture of
the 1970s and 80s of distraction and disengagement. (MEYER, 2000, 196)
land art as reclamation

Developing further the ideals of land art, many artists have attempted to fix envi-
ronmentally damaged, waste lands, and derelict industrial landscapes (like strip 49
mines, abandoned quarries, landfills) using aesthetic, artistic interventions. Hilary
Anne FROST-KUMPF’s states in her essay Reclamation Art: Restoring and Com-
memorating Blighted Landscapes, that reclamation art projects are “large-scale
site-specific works that are designed to go beyond making the reclaimed sites safe
and inoffensive and to add the creative statement of an artistic work”.1 It seems like
a natural progression from taking art out of the gallery and sited into the landscape
to the idea of how art is used in reclaiming ‘waste landscapes’. These sites already

invoke a response from the viewer. Seemingly negative associations like scar, ruin,
eyesore, ugly, even waste suggests there is already some kind of connection to the
site. There is something interesting that continues to hold our attention even if the
site is not considered to be ‘beautiful’. It also suggests that the aesthetic, visual
disfigurement to the landscape from human activities is important.2 This relation-
ship is something some artists wish to explore. Even if the landscape is ‘ugly’, there
is an appreciation for it nonetheless. Appreciation of the site as is, is the recogni-
1, 2 | FROST-FRUMPF, H. A. (1995): Reclamation Art: Restoring and Commemorating Blighted Landscapes. http://nmr.collinsand-
goto.com/weblinks/frost/FrostTop.html (02.05.2012)
tion by artists that there is ‘something worth being engaged with or represented’.
(MASKITT, 2007, 327)
Since the 1970s, artists have explored the ‘derelict landscape’ and looked for
solutions to reclaim the sites for human use. (STRELOW, 2004,156) Robert Smith-
son and Robert Morris were perhaps among the first artists to develop proposals
for these types of sites. The industrial landscape was a powerful symbol of how a
landscape can be entirely taken over by the ‘industrial reality’. They looked to em-
phasize ‘this power by artistic means’. (STRELOW, 2004,156) There are a number
of reasons for the attraction to these sites for art. For one, these ‘disrupted’ land-
scapes confirm the ‘power of man over nature’. WEILACHER (1996, 28) suggests
this could be described as ‘Romantic’, where the ruins refer to the ‘transience of
man’s creations’, revealing the possibilities of technology of civilisation. Also, these
sites offer the opportunity for experimentation. There are few areas left where any-
thing goes. There are practically ‘no taboos in many disrupted landscapes’. Artists,
landscape architects, etc. are free to try something new in these sites. It is often
with these industrial sites where nature fights back and shows its ‘vital regenerative
abilities’. There are times where the artist attempts to include this ability in the con-
text of the artistic work. Not only do the artists have a strong interest in these sites
but there are many cases where there the interests of the local governments and
industrial companies coincide. The interest to remove the damage to the landscape
through aesthetic interventions sometimes call for an artistic intervention. (WEI-
LACHER, 1996, 30)
The intention and goals of reclamation art as with all art is diverse and complex.
FROST-KUMPF outlines the various objectives of artists. Some artists simply at-
tempt to transform these sites into aesthetically pleasing spaces, which are beauti-
ful to look at and hide the original history and context of the site. Others attempt
to see the sites differently. These mines and landfill sites are “powerful symbols of
our heritage that should not be minimized, but celebrated ... commemorated the
important and necessary side effects of vital industries and livelihoods”.There are
other artists that regard these waste landscapes as symbols of environmental deg-
radation.3 FROST-KUMPF refers to the artistic works done Robert Smithson, Robert
Morris, and Michael Heizer as examples of how to incorporate art into reclamation
projects.
Robert Smithson who was really the first artist to look and study the postindustrial.
As one of the first Land Artists to recognise the challenges associated with the
‘artistic dialogue with the devastated landscape’, Smithson was interested in the
‘aesthetic and fundamental experiences of human and natural destruction. (WEI-
LACHER, 1996, 28) He did not wish to recreate the ‘picturesque’ in the reclaimed
landscapes, instead he regarded the disruption of the landscape because of human
development as inevitable. It was not the goal of the artist to replace the site with a
‘new image of idyllic nature’ as this was not the way to assist with the site’s renew-
Ill. 15 | (above): Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson, Great Salt Lake al.4 He began to promote the practical applications that earth art could have in the
near Rezel Point, Utah, USA, 1970 | aerial view
reclamation of landscapes previously devastated by mining or other industrial activi-
ties. “Art can become a physical resource,” he argued, “that mediates between the 51
ecologist and the industrialist”. (HOWETT, 1985, 53) In the 1970s, Smithson wanted
to show the potential art has in reclaiming site. His Spiral Jetty (images to left) and
Broken Circle and Spiral Hill (described in detail on page 74) projects are examples
of his work in industrial landscape. He believed that his work could truly rejuvenate
the mining landscape and began to make proposals to mining companies in the
United States, not to camouflage the extent of the damage from the mine, but to
introduce a new perspective of the landscape.

Perhaps one of the best known earthworks, Spiral Jetty was completed in 1970 in
Ill. 16 | (above): Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson, Great Salt Lake
the Great Salt Lake, in northern Utah in the United States. Robert Smithson’s land
near Rezel Point, Utah, USA, 1970 | overlooking the lake art of arranged rock, earth, salt crystals, and algae formed a 460 metre long, 4.6
Ill. 17 | (below): Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson, Great Salt Lake metre wide spiral shaped jetty protruding into the lake. It was where Smithson made
near Rozel Point, Utah, USA, 1970 | detail of the crystallization
his major mark in the landscape. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 20) According to Smithson’s
3 | FROST-FRUMPF, H. A. (1995): Reclamation Art: Restoring and Commemorating Blighted Landscapes. http://nmr.collinsandgoto.
com/weblinks/frost/FrostTop.html (02.05.2012)
4| FROST-FRUMPF, H. A. (1995): Reclamation Art: Restoring and Commemorating Blighted Landscapes. http://nmr.collinsandgoto.
com/weblinks/frost/FrostTop.html (02.05.2012)
own writings, the intent of the earthwork was to ‘provide a particularly lucid example
of the correspondence between art work and site’. The intent with any project deal-
ing with nature, should be one in ‘conformity with nature’. The design should draw
out the best characteristics of site and at the same time, enhance the work where it
is sited. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 20)
The spiral form of the jetty came about from reading the local site and topography.
It was influenced by the site, once used to mine for oil. The topography related to
the ‘mythic whirlpool’ at the lake’s centre. (KASTNER, 1998, 58) Not only did the
form of the spiral, but the water and salt crystals from the lake, added another layer
to his work. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 22) The circular formation of the crystals is also
reflected in the shape of the spiral. (KASTNER, 1998, 58) Smithson’s preoccupa-
tion with temporarily and entropy ‘as a measure of disorder’ is also another reason
his selection of a spiral to mark the site. The spiral is “open and irreversible, com-
ing from nowhere, going nowhere”. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 22) The temporality of the
work is shown through its dependency on the fluctuating water levels of the lake.
Since its creation, the Spiral Jetty has been at times the work has been completely
covered by water and other times uncovered. The spiral path seems to jut into the
lake, a unifying element between ‘land and water, man and nature, growth and de-
cay.’ (CAMPBELL, 2006, 120) This submersion of the work is a testimony to ‘man’s
dominance of the landscape and a comment on his relationship to monuments’.
(KASTNER, 1998, 58)
The Spiral Jetty is a celebration of a site which was first only thought of as a natural
wasteland and industrial junk yard. The earthwork ‘pointed the towards a new ap-
preciation of postindustrial environments”. (CAMPBELL, 2006, 120) The site itself,
today is still a dumping place for rusting derricks, oil rigs, rail lines, leftover from the
attempts to extract the oil from the tar deposits in the lake. In this image, Smithson
saw a ‘sublime magnificence in this rare phenomena, prehistoric myth and postin-
dustrial dereliction” (CAMPBELL, 2006, 120) Smithson was initially drawn to the
site not only because of his interest in understanding decay, the process of entropy,
and the site’s postindustrial history but also because the Great Salt Lake contained
microorganism that turned the lake water pink. He wanted to expose this phenom-
enon in his work and to exploit it in the aesthetic process. (BEARDSLEY, 1998, 22)
The work changed through its environment which reflects Smithson’s fascination
with the process of entropy and the ‘inevitable transformative forces of nature’.
Ill. 18 | (above): Untitled: Johnson Pit #30, King County gravel
pit, Washington State, USA, Robert Morris, 1979 | shortly after (KASTNER, 1998, 58) CAMPBELL (2006, 121) suggests that the Spiral Jetty can be
construction completion considered a masterpiece in landscape design because it ‘marries the scale and
cosmology of indigenous aboriginal cultures with the clean, industrial vocabulary of
modernism’. It is an ‘ephemeral yet monolithic’ work, linking the ‘barren, volcanic
land to dead salt sea, provoking meditation and inspiring metaphor’.
Robert Morris’ Untitled: Johnson Pit #30 (images to the left) realised in 1979, was an
early attempt at ecological art. It is an earthwork on an abandoned sand and gravel
pit. The one and a half hectare (3.7 acre) site was chosen to provide artists with
design opportunities in King County as part of the symposium, Earthworks: Land
Reclamation as Sculpture. Morris converted the former gravel pits into a ‘green’ 53
amphitheatre, clearing the site of all undergrowth and trees. After terracing the land-
scape, rye grass was planted, returning the site to ‘green’. However, WEILACHER
Ill. 19 | (above): Untitled: Johnson Pit #30, Robert Morris,
1979 | view from on top of amphitheatre (1996, 29) argues that the usual ‘green cosmetic treatment’ that landscape archi-
Ill. 20 | (below): Untitled: Johnson Pit #30, Robert Morris, tects were normally accused of providing, is what this project shows. Morris ignored
1979 | detail of steps in the amphitheater
the ‘genius loci’ of the site, clearing the site of its history. Others suggest that the
‘park-like setting gently reminds the viewer of the site’s former industrial roots’, find-
ing a welcoming open space. The creation of this artwork returned the land to active

use. Thomas HEYD (2007, 334) in his article, Reflections on Reclamation Through
Art, argues that this reclamation work allows the viewer to reflect on the ‘denatured
character of the place’ and succeeds in transforming the site while also preserving
or revealing its history. The work, according to KASTNER, helps show the aes-
thetic possibilities of art-as-land reclamation and the economic viability of Land Art.
(KASTNER, 1998, 140)
Robert Morris’s concept of art reclamation concerning the role artists have in
redeveloping of disturbed, old industrial sites, involved looking at the aesthetics
(and ethics) of old industrial sites. Morris’s views are perhaps best described in
John BEARDSLEY book Earthworks and Beyond, where he takes up the questions
regarding the moral problems and responsibilities we have:
“It would be a misguided assumption to suppose that artists hired to work in
industrially blasted landscapes would necessarily and invariably choose to
convert such sites into idyllic and reassuring places, thereby socially redeem-
ing those who wasted the landscape in the first place....Will it be easier in the
future to rip up the landscape for one last shovelful of a non-renewable energy
source if an artist can be found (cheap, mind you) to transform the devastation
into an inspiring and modern work of art?” (as quoted in Beardsley, 2006, 94)
Ill. 21 | (above): Effigy Tumuli: Water Strider, Michael Heizer,
The implementation of Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (SMCRA) in Buffalo Rock State Park, Ottawa, Illinois, 1983-88 | aerial view
the United States in 1977 created opportunities for different kinds of reclamation Ill. 22 | (below): Effigy Tumuli: Catfish, Michael Heizer, Buffalo
Rock State Park, Ottawa, Illinois, 1983-88 | aerial view
projects. The law created opportunities for ‘new types’ of reclamation projects, as
for example, Michael Heizer’s Effigy Tumuli Sculptures. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 97)
Heizer’s sculptures are located at an abandoned surface coal mine and is one of
the first examples of a large scale earthworks reclamation project for a mining site.
The works were built between 1983 and 1988 and were one of the more ambitious
projects of the 1980s. (WEILACHER, 1996, 29) The sculptures are located on a site
which the State of Illinois had identified as high priority because of its location, vis-
ibility and the level of pollution on site. The old coal site was stripped in the 1930s
before reclamation of a site was required by law. The SMCRA made funds available
for this type of site, where reclamation was done much later than the closure of
the site. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 97) The forms of the earthworks are five animal forms
built on land near the Illinois River. The forms related to the ancient burial mounds
Ill. 23 | (below): Effigy Tumuli: Catfish, Michael Heizer, Buffalo
indigenous to the region and are best seen from the air. They are too large to be Rock State Park, Ottawa, Illinois. 1983-88 | view from ground
fully recognisable when viewed and experienced from ground. The earthworks can
really only be seen from the air, which is also a criticism of the project. (BEARDS-
LEY, 2006, 97) The earthworks are now part of the Buffalo Rock State Park near
Ottawa, Illinois. Unlike Morris, Heizer clearly states his work intent is ‘pure art’.
Heizer attempts to reject the cosmetic idea of ‘reclamation art’ of artifically restored
landscape. (WEILACHER, 1996, 29)
What artists, landscape architects, ecologists, and other professionals can do with
these postindustrial sites, is not only a question of what these landscapes mean to
humankind but also the aesthetically value we place on the landscape. “The ques-
tion of how we do, can, or ought to see something is a question, at least in part, for
aesthetics ... environmental aesthetics can offer a useful analysis of how we can see
these sites differently, in order to enable us to think of them differently”. (MASKITT,
2007, 324) We can only begin to truly understand, even appreciate what these
landscapes provided us, once we begin to perceive these landscapes differently. Art
can become a resource that mediates between the ecologist and the industrialist.
(BEARDSLEY 1989, 22) “How we can appreciate postindustrial requires a consider-
ation of how environmental art engages with postindustrial sites”. (MASKITT, 2007,
327) Only then when something changes the way we see it, can it have aesthetic
merit.
Such works lie between land art and landscape architecture, resonating with Smith-
son’s interest in artworks that could regenerate postindustrial landscapes and Mor- 55
ris’s discussion of ‘land reclamation as sculpture’. (RENDELL, 2006, 37) Land artists
like the Smithson and Morris, saw strip mines, landfills, polluted environments, etc.
as ‘raw materials for outdoor artworks’, as sites for reclamation art. HEYD (2007,
341) suggests that these artists were more ‘engaged with minding than in mending
the land’. Art was used to address the ‘blight on nature caused by industrial entre-
preneurship’ but opposed to attempting to fix the past exploitation of the land. He
goes on further to say, a main concern in restoration or reclamation projects, is that

if past human activity is successfully covered up and returned to the precondition
of site, is this then considered to be a forgery and ultimately justifies future ‘incur-
sions into relatively untouched areas that, whatever damage is done to them, can
be corrected later without further losses’. (HEYD, 2007, 340) This is not the intent of
many reclamation projects using art. The idea that we can through art ‘successfully’
remake a natural landscape is contradictory. Art does however, have a place.
chapter three: appreciation
the postindustrial aesthetic
The discussion of the role of art in postindustrial landscapes developed as art- Ill. 24 | (previous page): Mines #17, Edward Burtynsky, Lornex
Open Pit Copper Mine. Highland Valley, British Columbia,
ists began taking interest in the subject matter. The postindustrial was arguably a Canada, 1985
production of the industrial revolution. When considering environmental aesthetics,
postindustrial landscapes are not necessarily one of the first category that comes to
mind. The idea that industry can have aesthetic value seems at first contradictory.
Jonathan Maskitt states in his article Line of Wreakage: Towards a Postindustrial
Environmental Aesthetics, “For something to have aesthetical merit, it needs to
change how we see ... Postindustrial sites make clear just how difficult it really is
to disentangle the cultural and the natural, which shows us why we need a ‘mixed’
aesthetics”. (MASKITT, 2007, 324)
Our understanding of postindustrial landscape is continually challenged by artists.

According to MASKITT (2007, 328), there are three stages to consider in the dis-
cussion of art and the postindustrial. The first aspect is appreciation. Appreciation
refers to the postindustrial being taken up as subject matter for artistic representa-
tion. Appreciation is the “recognition by artists that there is something worth being
engaged with or represented”. (MASKITT, 2007, 328) The second is intervention.
Artists directly engage with the postindustrial, either through materiality or the actual
siting of their work. The industrial site itself is the medium of the work. The third dia-
logue is renovation. Renovation involves artists collaborating with landscape archi-
tects, engineers, planners, etc., seeking to not only intervene in a postindustrial site
for artistic purposes, but ultimately transform the site in some way to bring a new
sense of meaning to the site. Maskitt argues that, “what is needed to make sense
of such art and of the postindustrial itself is a new aesthetic category”. (MASKITT,
2007, 327)
The dialogue between landscape architecture, land art and the postindustrial
continues to develop. The landscapes we live, work, play, experience, etc. can be
seen as a forum for cultural discussion, one of the key arenas for cultural debate.
Our articulation of cultural values and how we relate to landscapes through cultural
expression and ideology, is shown in how we connect and see the landscapes we
experience. The aesthetics involving land art is an expression of this idea.
the land art aesthetic

One of the key contribution land art has had is in the discussion of landscape aes-
thetics. Aesthetic quality in landscape architecture had been slowly abandoned over
the last hundred years. The focus shifted from aesthetics and beauty to functional,
sociological and ecological considerations. WEILACHER (2008, 1) suggests that this
‘loss of expressive force and stimulus to society’ marked the beginning of ‘complete
inarticulateness’ developing in landscape architecture, resulting in serious implica-
tions to our understanding of landscapes. There is this disconnect to the environ-
ment. Perhaps one of the main issues is the “disturbed relationship of man to nature
and the ensuing world-wide threat to the ecological balance”. (WEILACHER, 2008,
1) The question to how to solve the ecological and social problems, is to under- 59
stand that a solution cannot be found using only scientific responses. Society is
still seeking a technological solution to a crisis generated by the same technology”.
(WEILACHER, 1996, 9) The reinstatement of art as a tool of ‘non-verbal communica-
tion’, is used particularly in the use of the aesthetics of Land Art. Land art attempts

“to win back nature as space which allows sensory perception, space in which a
relationship between man and the environment becomes at all possible again” and
is seen as an exemplary approach to developing a new language in the landscape.
(WEILACHER, 1996, 9)
Emily Brady in her article Aesthetic Regard for Nature in Environmental and Land
Art, suggests that land art works can provide an understanding and insight in the
‘sensuous, imaginative, expressive, and conceptually based forms of human valu-
ing of nature’. (BRADY, 2007, 297) There are some forms of land art that can in
fact widen our knowledge of aesthetic value to include deeper forms of ‘aesthetic
environmental engagement’. (BRADY, 2007, 297) Land art projects can be more
than only ‘observational aesthetics’. Her views oppose the aesthetic preservation-
ist views like Allen Carlson, which in part denies the importance of the interactions
between artworks and the ‘alterations of nature’. Brady states:
“These artistically generated relationships contribute a great deal to grasping
the variety of ways we value the natural environment aesthetically, as well as
indicating some connections between aesthetic and ethical value.” (BRADy,
2007, 297)
The ability of land art to form a sense of place (or genius loci) in the landscape
through its use of forms and materiality. Land art attempts to return to the original
source for inspiration and meaning to spur the perception of the landscape. Forms
create their own language of the landscape which according to Weilacher, is a
particular feature of land art, the language of its form. (WEILACHER, 1996, 19) The
forms in land art works seem to fall within geometric forms. These forms include the
point, the line, the circle, the spiral, the labyrinth, and the pyramid. They are essen-
tially archetypal symbols and often characterised by simple but severe geometries. Ill. 25 | (above): A Circle in Alaska, Richard Long, Bering Strait
(WEILACHER, 1996, 19) The line is used to make the unseen visible, directing the Driftwood On The Arctic Circle, 1977
viewer, and providing a sense of movement in a ‘process of development’. The Ill. 26 | (below): Frozen patch of snow, Andy Goldsworthy,
Brough, Cumbria,1984 | each section carved with a stick, sev-
circle, a universal symbol in nearly all cultures, signifies wholeness concentrat- eral broken along the way began to thaw as day warmed up
ing either in the centre or radiating outwards into the surroundings. The pyramid is
the ‘basic phenomenon of perception’, representing the everyday life. According
to Heinz Thiel, pyramids and cones “from the aesthetic point of view, the eye sees
mounds as harmonious, and this in itself is reassuring enough for the cone and
pyramid not to require any further explanation of inquiry as to their meaning”. (WEI-
LACHER, 1996, 20)
Where the forms speak to the expression of the works, materials grounds the land
art in its attempt to return to ‘nature’. (WEILACHER, 1996, 15) Materials typically
used in land art, for simplicity, are considered to be ‘natural materials’. Nature is the
Ill. 27 | (below): Mill Creek Canyon Earthworks, Herbert Bayer,
material of art. Earth, stone, wood, snow and ice, are typically used. In land art the Washington, USA, 1982
material becomes the medium which “influences the figurative and symbolic mes-
sage of the work”. (WEILACHER, 1996, 15) Walter de Maria, a land artist, refers to
the earth as “the dirt (or earth) is there not only to be seen, but to be thought about.
God has given us the earth and we have ignored it”. (BOETTGER, 2002, 117) Stone
is perhaps the most important materials worked by man and has a central role in
art. It has been used for thousands of years in all aspects of culture, and is a symbol
of ‘stability, endurance, reliability, immortality, permanence, eternal’. The stone “tells
a piece of landscape history through its location, its type of rock and form, strength-
ening the relationship of the work to the place”. (WEILACHER, 1996, 16)
An interesting dimension of land art is perhaps its dealing with time and the eventual
decay of the work. Nothing lasts forever. Land art interventions understand “time as
the non-material dimension of space” but, despite their monumental proportions,
the works in the landscapes are invocations of time. (WEILACHER, 1996, 21) This
dimension perhaps adds to the richness of the aesthetic experience of the works.
As with the industrial landscapes, entropy is a given phenomenon. With the passage
of time, things will decay. The correlation between land art and the postindustrial,
make the marriage between these two elements fitting. Time is not feared but cel-
ebrated as another layer to consider in the site. (WEILACHER, 1996, 28) The use of
the land art aesthetic to emphasis time in the postindustrial, is seemingly a natural
expression. Understanding that the postindustrial can be considered a type of envi-
ronmental aesthetic. 61
environmental aesthetics
Environmental aesthetics can trace its roots back to the aesthetic philosophies of
the eighteenth and nineteenth-centuries. Historically the aesthetics of nature fo-

cused on three conceptualisations: the Beautiful, Sublime, and Picturesque. (CARL-
SON, 2009, 3) Beautiful refers to the tamed and cultivated European gardens and
landscapes on the eighteenth century. Beautiful objects tended to be small in scale,
smooth, but subtly varied, delicate, and fair in colour. The Sublime was in opposition
large in scale. Objects were considered to be powerful, vast, intense, and terrifying.
Philosopher Allen Carlson states, “the experience of the sublime, the more threat-
ening and terrifying of natures’ manifestations, such as mountains and wilderness,
when viewed with disinterestedness, can be aesthetically appreciated, rather than
simply feared or despised”. (CARLSON, 2009, 3) Carlson also suggests that the
third concept of Picturesque having the greatest importance in understanding the
aesthetic experience of nature as it concerns itself with the appreciation of nature
and is found in the mid-point between beautiful and sublime. Objects were ‘com-
plex and eccentric, varied and irregular, rich and forceful, and vibrant with energy’. It
was thought that the landscape would be more appealing if they resembled works
of art. Picturesque strengthened the connections between the aesthetic apprecia-
tion of nature and the treatment of nature in art. (CARLSON, 2009, 4) These notions
continue to play a role in contemporary work in environmental aesthetics, especially
in the context of its relationship to environmentalism.
During the last third of the twentieth century, the aesthetics of nature, in particular
environmental aesthetics, experienced a renewal. Carlson contributes this revival
to several factors. This revival came in reaction to environmental concerns. Public
concern regarding the ‘degeneration of the environmental, aesthetics and other-
wise’, was growing, however this interest further developed because of both the
theoretical discourse and practical action regarding the environmental movement,
the academic world was beginning to realise. (CARLSON, 2009, 9)
The development of contemporary environmental aesthetics involves not only

the investigation of the aesthetic appreciation of natural environments, including
not only natural environments but also human-influenced environments, common
objects, and the aesthetics of everyday life and activities. (CARLSON, 2009, 11)
Environmental philosophers, concerned in bringing our aesthetic appreciation of
environments, both natural and human, in line with our environmental and moral
responsibilities to maintain ecological health.1 Meyer (2000, 243) describes the role
of the aesthetic experience and the ‘mission’ of the landscape architect in their
function as environmentalist. One mission is reflection. The works should reflects
the ‘existing environmental values through siting, formal gestures, and their relation-
ship to their ecological and cultural contexts. The other mission is projection. Proj-
ects should ‘give rise to collective aesthetic experiences’ that potentially can bring
about a more ‘mature ecological environmental consciousness’. Meyer essentially
suggests that works of a landscape architect can help people give serious thought
to the worth of the environment and how it relates to them. Landscape architecture
projects that reveal a landscape’s ‘essential structure and character’ and creates
aesthetic experiences, can perhaps lead to developing a better consciousness,
sense of belonging, and understanding of the environment we find ourselves in.
(Meyer, 2000, 243)
1 | (Rolston 1995 2002, Eaton 1997a 1997b 1998, Saito 1998b, Lintott 2006)
appreciating the postindustrial
The dialogue between environmental art and the postindustrial begins with an ap-
preciation for the postindustrial landscape. To have an appreciation is to have a
sensitive understanding of the aesthetic value of something. Is it possible to have
an appreciation for something that are seemingly ‘ugly’? Maskitt poses the question
regarding the postindustrial, “What about those things that seem to be aestheti-
cally appreciable not in light of their functions and histories but despite them?”
(MASKITT, 2007, 327) The appreciation of the postindustrial requires a consideration
of how environmental art engages with these sites, as the postindustrial as the sub-
ject matter taken up for artistic representation. Appreciation is the “recognition by
artists that there is something worth being engaged with or represented”. (MASKITT,
2007, 327) Appreciation of the postindustrial is perhaps best displayed in the work
by the internationally renowned Canadian photographer, Edward Burtynsky. The
subject matter in his images cannot perhaps be described as beautiful but they
Ill. 28 | (above): Mines #19, Edward Burtynsky, Westar Open
Pit Coal Mine. Sparwood, British Columbia, Canada, 1985
have the ability to hold our attention anyway.
Burtynsky refers to his work as ‘forbidden pleasure’.1 There is something about the 63
subject matter that make us want to look at the photograph. We are attracted to it
but at the same repulsed by it. The Washington Post referred to Burtynsky’s work as
Ill. 29 | (below): Nickel Tailings No. 34, Edward Burtynsky,
Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, 1996 “prettifying the terrible ... Burtynsky calls his images ‘a second look at the scale of
what we call progress,’ and hopes that [they] acquaint viewers with the ramifications

of our lifestyle”.2
Over the last twenty-five years, Burtynsky work predominantly explores the theme
of nature and the environment being transformed through industry. His work looks at
the significant ways and unfamiliar places in which human activity has reshaped the
surface of the land. His medium is the impressive large-scale colour photographs of
the postindustrial landscapes of mining, quarrying, waste run-off, slag, scree, recy-
cling, oil refining, among other sites.3 His images “uncover a stark, almost sublime
beauty in the residue of industrial ‘progress’ by exploring the impact of humanity’s
ever growing ecological footprint”. The images expose the beauty of these ‘industri-
al incursions’ (artist’s term) and the implicit social and environmental upheavals that
1, 2 | BURTYNSKY, T. (2006): TED Talks: http://www.ted.com/speakers/edward_burtynsky.html (03.04.2012)
3, 5 | BURR, T. (2007): An eloquent ecological warning. NY Times Co. http://articles.boston.com/2007-06-22/ae/29236296_1_manu-
factured-landscapes-xiamen-city-edward-burtynsky (04.01.2012)
form the basis these images make them powerful emblems of our times”.4 His im-
ages alter the way we think about the world and our place in it. He finds the ruined
poetry in extraction industries and also at the other end of the consumer life span.5
In his essay, Exploring the Residual Landscape, Burtynsky believes his images are
meant as ‘metaphors to the dilemma of our modern existence; they search for a di-
alogue between attraction and repulsion, seduction and fear’.6 The images function
as ‘reflecting pools of our time’, drawing our attention to our consumption of nature
to provide for our dependency on the materials we want for a ‘chance at good
living’. We are consciously or unconsciously aware for the health of planet. These
industrial landscapes are leftovers from our need for progress. They are places that
seem ‘outside of our normal experience, however we partake of their output on a
daily basis’ through the products we used and consume.7 Burtynsky attempts to in-
tersect with a contemporary view of the great ages of man; from stone, to minerals,
oil, transportation, silicon, and so on. Burtynksy states, “To make these ideas visible
I search for subjects that are rich in detail and scale yet open in their meaning”.8
4, 6, 7, 8 | BURTYNSKY, T. (2012): Exploring the Residual Landscape. http://www.edwardburtynsky.com/ (05.01.2012)
intervention
Interventionist artwork refers to using the industrial site itself as the medium.
MASKITT (2007, 328) considers both Robert Smithson and Richard Serra to be
postindustrial interventionist artists, where instead of seeing the postindustrial as
something to be representing, the postindustrial itself is the medium of their work.
He considers Smithson to be a true postindustrial artist. Smithson’s work often
directly refers to old abandoned industrial sites. His artwork is sited directly in these
places. While Serra’s work, MASKITT (2007, 328) suggests, can help us see the
‘beauty in industrial materials with little or no regard for the processes that cre-
ated them’ as his work primarily uses industrial materials like steel. For that reason,
Serra’s work can “help us to see possibilities in postindustrial sites that we might
not have noticed”.
Richard Serra’s use of mass-produced industrial materials in his works, deprived

the art object of ‘the aura of uniqueness and timelessness’. (KASTNER, 1998, 196)
Serra is known for his large-scale abstract sculptures made of rusted steel. His
work is often sited, relating to the space for which it was made: a museum gallery,
the city, or the landscape. The industrial materials in his sited sculptures allow the
viewer to experience the materials in a new way. (KASTNER, 1998, 196) Examples
of his work are Sea Level and Bramme for the Ruhr-District Sculpture. Sea Level is
made of two impressive concrete walls, each 200 metres long, diagonally aligned
on both sides of a canal. The walls disappear into the landscape almost unnoticed
at its ends and in the middle, several metres high.1 Bramme is a free-standing steel
sculpture, a monument to the industrial history of the site. It stands on top of a coal
mine, drawing attention to the landscape of the Ruhr as a work of art.2
Within this framework, the question is not whether we should do something with
damaged sites, but what should be done with these sites. How a designer inter-
venes in a site can be done in a number of way. The term restoration involves trying
Ill. 30 | (above): Sea Level, Richard Serra, Zeewolde, the
Netherlands, 1986 | concrete wall to return the industrial site to its pre-industrial state. Its goal is ultimately to remove
all signs from the site that it was an industrial landscape. Restoration ‘seeks and
inevitably fails to bring into being what once was’.3 The idea is to bring back the
65
original landscape to the way it was before industry came to the site. Restoration
Ill. 31 | (below): Bramme for the Ruhr-District Sculpture, essentially ignores the history of the site and attempts to hide what was once there.
Richard Serra, Schurenbachalde in Essen, Germany, 1989 | Katz argues that restoration is only a technical solution to a technical problem. The
steel monument
human experience or how the site came to be is not taken into account. ‘Success-

ful’ restoration projects may lead us to believe that we can ‘fix a damaged site’.
Katz believes there is almost something melancholic, even tragic, in the practice of
restoration.4
Transformation of the postindustrial site refers to dramatically changing the form

and/or appearance of the site. The goal, however, of transformation is to provide the
site with an ‘aesthetic character that is disconnected both from its preindustrial and
industrial pasts’.5 Unlike restoration, transformation cannot be said to copy nature,
as transformation projects attempt to make a site into something it never was. The
site’s industrial history is however removed. There is an ‘obliteration of the past’.
1 | BORSBOOM, C. (N.D.): Richard Serra, Sea Level (1989-1996). Museum De Paviljoens Online. http://www.depaviljoens.nl/
page/387/en (05.05.2012)
2 | GUERIN, F. (2008): Ruhr Valley Secrets, Richard Serra’s Bramme für das Ruhrgebeit. Fx Reflects Blog. http://fxreflects.blogspot.
com/2008/12/ruhr-valley-secrets-richard-serras.html (05.05.2012)
3, 4, 5, 6 | MASKITT, J. (2009): On the recuperation of postindustrial sites: an aesthetic analysis. European Journal of Geography.
http://cybergeo.revues.org/22341 (04.01.2012)
The industrial past of the site, is essentially forgotten, changed into something new.6
As with Serra’s works, where once experienced, the industrial materials (i.e. rust)
will not be seen in the same way again, seeing this one aspect of the postindustrial
differently. (MASKITT, 2007, 328) This transformation of vision, in how we are able to
see the postindustrial, is important if to see it in a new way. Smithson, on the other
hand, create many works that compose ‘an artistic engagement with postindustrial
sites’ and through these artistic interventions, attempted to redeem those sites.
(MASKITT, 2007, 328) Maskitt states, “by bringing those sites to us, they remind
us that we are part of the social and economic system that is responsible for the
condition of those sites...and show us that possibilities remain in these sites that we
might not otherwise have seen”. (MASKITT, 2007, 328)
Renovation attempts to look at all relevant site contexts, no only the site’s pre-
industrial past, but also is industrial legacy. It looks to, unlike both restoration or
transformation, sustain traces of the site’s industry past. However, Maskitt suggest
no one can mistake a renovated site for anything other than what it is: a postin-
dustrial site turned to other uses. Successful projects ‘bear a markedly different
relationship to the site’s past, and therefore as well to its future ... showing sensitiv-
ity to the site’s preindustrial character as well’.7 Renovation is to be preferred over
restoration and transformation for ‘its attitude towards the future, which requires
taking seriously and learning from the past.’ Renovation presents itself as a respect-
ful recuperation of a site and its history.
How does land art fit into the picture? Not all postindustrial sites can or should be
turned into artworks. They should however, need to be redeveloped in some way
that address its industrial history and previous function of the site. (MASKITT, 2007,
330) In both appreciation and intervention, artistic works provide ‘evidence of aes-
thetic value’ in postindustrial sites. If artistic intervention was absent, would it still
be possible to change the way we see the postindustrial? The question that needs
to be answered, is what further aesthetic interventions are necessary to see the po-
tential in the postindustrial and ultimately to realize that potential in actual projects?
(MASKITT, 2007, 330)
7 | MASKITT, J. (2009): On the recuperation of postindustrial sites: an aesthetic analysis. European Journal of Geography. http://cy-
bergeo.revues.org/22341 (04.01.2012)
the interesting
Maskit proposes a new category to capture the aesthetic experience of postin-
dustrial landscape art which is missing from current terminology, the interesting.
“It is that characteristic of an object of aesthetic appreciation that leads us to think
otherwise. For to see otherwise is also to think otherwise. It is to see things as
standing in different relations than we had previously seen. It is to see possibilities
previously unseen”. (MASKITT, 2007, 331) The particular form of sensory perception
of the interesting in reference to the postindustrial, according to Maskitt has more
similarities to the sublime and than the beautiful. As Kant suggested back in the
eighteenth century, the sublime both attracts and repeals us. In a sense, the postin-
dustrial does this as well. “We find ourselves simultaneously awed and disgusted;
impressed and depressed. The power of technological culture to transform nature
is made manifest here in its starkest form. And yet, we do not turn away. We both
rue what is no more and are smitten by what is”. (MASKIT, 2007, 332) Why return
the postindustrial to what it once was? If we already find these sites interesting,
the best thing could be to preserve this character and integrity of the place. These 67
sites developed out of the need of humankind. They are statements to our culture.
To deny that would be to deny our role in creating this sites in the first place. If the
effect of postindustrial art, is to improve our ability to see the site, perhaps the goal
of these works should strive to preserve its character while turning the sites to new

uses and functions. (MASKIT, 2007, 332) Maskitt states:
“Such works—as full-fledged aesthetic engagements with the postindustrial
—change how we see, thus opening our vision to an aesthetic engagement
with the postindustrial itself, an aesthetic engagement not only oriented to
what was and is, but, perhaps more importantly, always also to what might
be.” (MASKIT, 2007, 335)
Elisabeth K. Meyer also speaks to aesthetic engagements with the site. The works
try to account for both for the site’s history and for its projected future and not to
turn the site into an artwork that can never be altered. The site should become a
“place where one can interact with the site aesthetically, as a site of both nature and
culture, and always with the recognition that both nature and culture can change
with time”. (MEYER, 2008)
chapter four: interventions
broken circle and spiral hill, netherlands
Artist: Robert Smithson Artist Biography:

Robert Smithson (1938 – 1973) was one of the found-
Timeline of Project: 1971
ers of the Earthworks or Land Art movement. He was
Site: abandoned sand quarry perhaps one of the best know artist of this genre. His
Material: Earth, topsoil, white and yellow sand, green water writings provided much of the critical framework for
Size: Broken circle diameter: 42 metres (140 feet), Canal 3.5 metres (12 feet) wide, the movement. The movement itself was a reaction to
the ‘disengagement of Modernism from social issues’.
Quarry lake depth of 3 - 4.5 metres (10 - 15 feet) | Spiral Hill: diameter 23 metres at
(Kastner, 1998, 197) His most famous work, arguably
the base the best known piece of all land art, is the Spiral Jetty.
Location: Emmen, The Netherlands
He began his artistic career primarily as a painter but
was also a writer and created sculptures. His interest in
the environment was influenced by his visits to urban,
Robert Smithson’s land art project Broken Circle and Spiral Hill was completed in industrial, and quarry sites. (Kastner, 1998, 197) Smith-
June 1971. It is the only ‘earthwork’ made by Smithson still in existence outside son viewed the postindustrial landscape as another
the United States. The work is sited in an abandoned sand quarry in Emmen, The evolution the landscape must go through. Although he
was well aware of the environmental issues industrial
Netherlands. The site was on its way to becoming postindustrial. (MASKITT, 2007, landscapes had, he viewed “the devastating effects
330) The project was made within the framework of an international exhibition called of irresponsible agriculture, abandoned industry and
unchecked urban sprawl as simply one more layer in
Sonsbeek 71. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 22) The site itself was planned to be converted the continuing evolution of the earth”. (Campbell, 2006,
into a recreation area, when it was given to Smithson for his earthwork installa- 120) Smithson’s ‘canvas’ became the postindustrial,
where he saw the “monumental vacancies that define,
tion. The works were Smithson’s first attempt at the possibility of using land art to without trying, the memory traces of an abandoned set
‘reclaim an industrial site’. (KASTNER, 1998, 60) Smithson described his work in of future.” (Beardsley, 2006, 7) He realised that we are
all ‘physically and culturally bound to the earth’ and that
an interview with Gregoire Mueller in 1971, “in a very densely populated area like the classic metaphor of ‘nature as a primordial garden’
Holland, I feel it’s best not to disturb the cultivation of the land. With my work in the was no longer fitting for a landscape that bore scars of
disruption as in the postindustrial landscape. (Beards-
quarry, I somehow re-organized a disrupted situation and brought it back some kind ley, 2006, 8) Smithson perceived landscape as places
of shape”. (quoted in KASTNER, 1998, 60) that constantly change and go through metamorphosis
that reveals entropy, that measures the ‘gradual, steady
The work has two components: the Broken Circle and Spirall Hill. (MASKITT, 2007, disintegration in a system’. (Beardsley, 2006, 8)
330) The material found on site was white and yellow sand, red and brown loam, In the summer of 1973, Smithson tragically died in a
and a blue-green water pond. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 22) Smithson formed Broken plane crash, surveying sites for his Amarillo Ramp
project. Many of his plans for other postindustrial land-
Circle at one edge of the water, where he built an arched jetty into the water. To ac- scapes were never realised, however despite his early
complish this, he graded the slope flat and cut a curving channel into it. The jetty is death and relatively few surviving major works, Smith-
son is still considered to be an important artist and has
approximately 42 metres (140 ft) in diameter. a strong following amongst many contemporary artists.
Ill. 32 | (previous page): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin,

Mountainville, New York, USA. 2009
Ill. 33 | (above); Robert Smithson at the site of Spiral Jetty.
Smithson located Spiral Hill on the slope directly above Broken Circle. He used
overburden, rock or soil that covers a mineral deposit found onsite, to construct
the hill itself. Several inches of topsoil was then also added on top to cover the
overburden. A counterclockwise path of white sand was then placed on the hill.
(BEARDSLEY, 2006, 23). The direction of the path along the edge of the hill is also
a symbol of destruction. The spiral path wrapped its way up to the top of the hill.
(KASTNER, 1998, 60) The spatial and environmental context of the work are an
integral part of the works. Smithson used symbology throughout the works. While
Ill. 34 | (above): Broken Circle Spiral Hill, Robert Smithson,
Emmen, Netherlands, 1971 | conceptual sketch Spiral Hill, according to Beardsley, lacks ‘originality of its form or deftness of its
Ill. 35 | (below): Broken Circle Spiral Hill, Robert Smithson, Em- execution’, Broken Circle is interesting because of its use of ‘symmetry of oppo-
men, Netherlands, 1971 | aerial view 1
sites’. For example the semicircles of water and soil, canal and jetty. The circle has
an ‘enchanted quality’ because of the huge glacial boulder that was only discovered
after grading the site flat. It ended up becoming the focal point of the work, being
too large to move which at first created concerns for Smithson. In the end, Smithson
finally appreciated the boulder for its connection and symbology to the ‘prehistorical
burial markers’ found in the area. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 23) According to Maskitt, “the 71
two pieces together, working with height, depth, and circularity, evoke the removal
that the quarry entails, the building up (in other places) its products enable, and,
perhaps most importantly, the cyclical nature of change, both cultural and natural”.
(MASKITT, 2007, 330)
chapter four: intervention

Ill. 36 | (below): Broken Circle Spiral Hill, Robert Smithson, Em-
men, Netherlands, 1971 | aerial view 2 straight on earthwork Although Smithson’s intention was for the work to decay over time and gradually
disappear, the local community decided to maintain the work in its original form.
Today, some forty years following its completion, the work is still in good condition.
According to Beardsley, the significance of Broken Circle and Spiral Hill was that
the project gave Smithson the incentive to further ‘pursue his pairing of art with land
reclamation’. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 23) Smithson recognised that industrial activ-
ity was always to be part of human civilisation, however there are opportunities of
using art to enhance the visual qualities of the reclamation project. This project was
Smithson’s only project combining reclamation and art. (KASTNER, 1998, 197)
terra nova project, germany
Artist: Hermann Prigann Artist Biography:
Client: Herman Prigann (1942 - 2008) was an important public
Timeline of Project: Yellow Ramp, 1993-1995 II and III. Biennale for land art. figure in the effort to reclaim devastated landscapes.
He was one of Germany’s leading environmental artists.
Site: lignite surface mining His projects often involved the looking at the heavily im-
Material: earth, granite stone (2.5 x 3 m), concrete slabs (from temporary road), veg- pacted coal mining and industrial areas (especially in
etation (broom, black conifers, yellow flowering plants) Germany) and transforming these sites into new artistic
Size: Length 220 meters, highest point of ramp 15 meters, diameter of observatory parks and public spaces. He explored the economic,
social, and ecological context of each site, to create
12 meter, width of ramp 4 - 6 meters. a fitting and lasting aesthetic intervention. He viewed
Location: Cottbus, Germany the landscape as ‘bearing the stamp of culture, and
not that notion, full of romantic projections, that nature
is only “the other” – i.e. something that is opposed to
culture and urban conditions.’ He states instead that
Terra Nova was one of Herman Prigann’s ongoing projects. It is a programme that the beginning and the end of culture is nature, the one
immanent in the other. (WEILACHER, 1996) His works
deals with destructed landscapes, in particular industrial landscapes and concen- are “aesthetic engagements with the site, seeking to
trates on its ‘aesthetic and recultivation’. The intent of the programme is to produce account both for the site’s history and for its projected
future...seek not to turn the site into an artwork that
an ‘artistic understanding of nature’ that can only develop through a thorough can never be altered, but into a place where one can
analysis of the current ecological and aesthetic problems, context, situation, and interact with the site aesthetically, as a site of both na-
ture and culture, and always with the recognition that
conditions of the site.1 both nature and culture change with time.” (MASKIT,
2007, 335)
An example of one of the projects as part of Prigann’s Terra Nova, in the Yellow Prigann had his own ideas about ruins, in particular
Ramp. It completed in 1995 and built for the Biennale for Land Art in Cottbus, Ger- with the postindustrial. The intent of his work is to pro-
duce ‘slowness’, the integration of nature’s succession,
many. The Earthwork’s intention is to be a ‘geoglyph’, a sign and observation place and to understand the relationship between decay and
in the landscape. The work is symbolic in its intent. The observatory is constructed growth. Especially in industrial landscapes, this philos-
ophy was, in his words, a reaction to the one reason
following the rules of neolithic observatories. The concrete slabs, vertically set, to
why ‘landscapes destroyed by our industrial agriculture
mark the four cardinal points. Four small passages are purposely left open between and the mental deserts of our societies, the increase of
the concrete slabs on the east side of the earthwork. During the solstice, sunshine profit and speed.’ The industrial ruins in his work, have
a reference to the ‘metamorphosis of remembrance’
crosses through to touch the two centre stones in the place. The plantings on the of the progress the occurred on site. The character of
earthwork are supposed to grow over the ramp. Broom and other yellow flower- the site through the references to the remains of the
mining areas is strengthened through Prigann’s con-
ing plants like St. John’s wort, mullein, lupine, and sun flowers, will blossom every servation and integration of these traces in his work.
year from May until September, furthering tying nature back into the work through The ‘tradition of our perception of history and a roman-
tic reflection about transiency’ is reflected in his work.
1 | PRIGANN, H. (1998): Thoughts about “Art in Nature”. In: IO Magazine (Environmental Art). Summer 1998. www.helsinki.fi/iiaa/ (WEILACHER, 1996)
io/io1998.pdf (01.22.2012)
Ill. 37 | (above): Hermann Prigann, ‘Vorbereitung für “bren-
nende Pyramide”, Donauinsel, Wien, 1985’.
its vegetation. It is where the work gets its name. The intent with Prigann’s Yellow
Ramp, is to have an interplay between the time process in former coal mines, con-
trolled by ‘technical means and the natural process of time’. (PRIGANN, 2004, 152)
The idea behind the Terra Nova Project is not just to make a model that can be fol-
lowed but also provide a demonstration to how different solutions can and per-
haps should be approached. The interdisciplinary joining of ecology, art, and social
Ill. 38 (above): Die gelbe Rampe (Yellow Ramp), Herman design creates solutions that can be used not only in Germany but in the rest of
Prigann, Cottbus, Germany, 1993-95
Europe and the world as well. The project developed out the necessity of redevelop-
Ill. 39 (below): Die gelbe Rampe (Yellow Ramp), Herman Prig-
ann | detail photograph of materiality of ramp ing old industrial landscapes. The project attempts to answer the question of what is
to be done with the disused landfills, dying woodlands, former open cast mines, etc.
as they literally left on the landscape.2
The process can be seen as ‘cultural ecology’, helping to create renewed areas that
are aesthetically and ecologically improved. The social aspect of the project is to
provide training and work for unemployed people as the projects are implemented.
Therefore both aspects, the derelict sites that are ‘no longer part of a developed 73
landscape and people who are no longer part of the working process are reintegrat-
ed in this project’.3 New jobs are created and an increased awareness of human and
ecological approach. PRIGANN states, “Without an aesthetic and visionary starting
point for the reshaping of the destroyed areas, there can be no positive identification

with the landscape.”4
2, 3, 4 | PRIGANN, H. (1998): Thoughts about “Art in Nature”. In: IO Magazine (Environmental Art). Summer 1998. www.helsinki.fi/
iiaa/io/io1998.pdf (01.22.2012)
Ill. 40 (below left): Die gelbe Rampe (Yellow Ramp), Herman
Prigann | hand perspective concept sketch
Ill. 41 (below right): Die gelbe Rampe (Yellow Ramp), Herman
Prigann | view of opencast cast mine with installation
tree mountain: a living time capsule, finland
Artist: Agnes Denes

Client: Finnish Ministry of the Environment
Timeline of Project: 1992-1996 (conception 1982)
Material: earthwork, trees
Site: former gravel pits
Size: 420x270x28 meters, elliptical
Location: Ylöjärvi, Finland
Description: 10 000 Trees, 10 000 People, 400 Years
Artist Biography:
Agnes Denes (1931) was born in Budapest, Hungary.
On Earth Environment Day, June 5, 1992, as part of the Earth Summit in Rio de
She however grew up in Stockholm and later was edu-
Janeiro, the Finnish government officially announced the ‘Tree Mountain’ project. cated in New York. She is considered one of the early
The project was to be Finland’s contribution to help ‘alleviate the world’s ecological pioneers of Environmental art movement, Conceptual
art, and Ecological art, trying to understand the com-
stress’. A project sponsored in part by the United Nations Environment Program, plex relationship of science to art. Her work has been
the Finnish Ministry of the Environment, and the Strata Committee, was to be a exhibited since the 1960s and is often monumental in
scale. The works considers ecological, cultural and so-
project involving not only the current generation but spanning future generations, by cial issues and attempts to produce ‘long-term environ-
reclaiming the landscape. Tree Mountain is a ‘vast monument that is international in mental benefits’. (KASTNER, 1998, 192)
scope, unparalleled in duration and not dedicated to the human ego, but to benefit In 1982, she gained recognition with one of her best-
future generations with a meaningful legacy’.1 Such of an undertaking is the first know environmental art projects: Wheatfield: A Con-
frontation. She planted a 0.8 hectare (two acres) wheat
of its kind, internationally innovative. The project is one of the first, both in Finland field in a landfill in downtown Manhattan, New York,
and the world where an artist ‘restores environmental damage with ecological art only blocks away from the former World Trade Cen-
ter and facing the Statue of Liberty. The intent of the
planned for this and future generations.’
installation, was to draw attention to ‘human values,
misplace priorities, and ecological concerns’. (KAST-
The massive earthwork is part of the land reclamation project of the Pinziö gravel NER, 1998, 160) The artwork ‘yielded’ over 450 kilo-
pits near Ylöjärvi, Finland by environmental artist Agnes Denes. The project involved grams (1000 pounds) of healthy wheat. Her works are
examples of what, in her opinion, needs to be done
building a huge artificial mountain measuring 420 meters long, 270 meters wide, with: ‘destroyed, barren land where resource extraction
and 28 meters high. The earthwork is elliptical in shape and covered by eleven has taken its toll; in the nervous tension of cities; on
deforested soil – to stop erosion, purify the air, protect
thousand trees. Eleven thousand people came together from all parts of the world fresh groundwater, provide home for wildlife and afford
to plant a total of eleven thousand trees. The project highlights the ecological people a chance to stay in touch with nature.’ (Agnes,)
In 1992 a retrospective of her work was presented at
importance of trees by restoring them to an environment previously degraded by Cornell University in the Herbert F. Johnson Museum.
mining. (BRADY, 2007, 296) The trees are planted in a design by Denes in an intri- (KASTNER, 1998, 192)
cate mathematical pattern. The pattern is derived from a combination of the golden Ill. 42 | (above): Agnes Denes in her ‘Wheatfield’ installation
1 | DENES, A. (n.d.): Healthy Paradox. Online Journal of Landscape, Art & Design. http://www.landviews.org/articles/paradox-ad.
html (04.23.2012)
section and the pineapple/sunflower system. Not only did the eleven thousand
people plant the trees but they promised to be ‘custodians of the trees’ receiving
certificates that can be passed down to future generations. Denes was also trying to
connect present generations of people to future generations, through the environ-
mental performance of planting trees. (BRADY, 2007, 297) The inheritable document
is valid twenty generations into the future and gives the holder responsibility over
the stewardship of one of the trees. This is proof that the project builds a legacy for
future generations. The project is located on protected land with the idea that it will
be maintained for at least four centuries, eventually developing into the first artificial
‘virgin’ forest.
Ill. 43 | (above): Tree mountain: a living time capsule, Agnes
Denes, Ylöjärvi, Finland, 1992-1996 |
conceptual plan + perspective The Tree Mountain project was first conceived in 1982. Agnes Denes’ concept for
the project was designed to ‘unite the human intellect with the majesty of nature’
and attempts to affirm humanity’s commitment to the future through the ecological,
social, and cultural sustainability of life. (KASTNER, 1998, 161) Her work embod-
ies the very idea of ecological harmony, aiming to establish a relationship between 75
human and non-human nature, valuing nature’s interests as more important than
perhaps human’s. (BRADY, 2007, 297) DENES2 regards her work with the following
statement,
“The beauty carries the concept, the philosophy and makes this work different from the
average reclamation project. It is art in the purest sense of the word. It is a new visual

language of communication that expands the boundaries of art. It speaks to people at
all levels of life and reaches out to future generations with a legacy. These works ques-
tion the status quo, elicit and initiate new thinking processes and offer provocative,
meaningful communication.”
Ill. 44 | (above): Tree mountain: a living time capsule, Agnes In June 1996, the project was dedicated by the President of Finland, officially mark-
Denes | view from on top of mountain overlooking landscape
ing the importance of the earthwork to Finland and the rest of the world.
2 | Denes, A. (1998): My Work as an Environmental Artist. In: IO Magazine (Environmental Art). Summer 1998. www.helsinki.fi/iiaa/
Ill. 45 | (below): Tree mountain, Agnes Denes io/io1998.pdf (01.22.2012)
| view of mountain snow covered
storm king wavefield, U.S.A.
Artist: Maya Lin

Client: Storm King Art Center
Timeline of project: 2007-2008
Site: former gravel pit
Material: Earth and grass
Size: 4.5 hectare site (11 acre)
Location: Mountainville, New York, U.S.A.
Artist Biography:
Maya Lin (1959), is an American artist and architect
known for her work in sculpture and landscape art. She
The Storm King Wavefield by artist and architect Maya Lin is an environmental rec- is perhaps best known for her design of the Vietnam
lamation project located on a former gravel pit, in accordance with the requirements Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., when she won
the public design competition while still an undergradu-
for site reclamation of the New York State Department of Environmental Conser- ate architecture student at Yale University. According
vation.1 The earthworks is a permanent installation at the Storm King Art Center in to her website, Maya Lin’s work is a ‘careful balance
between art and architecture, including large-scale site-
Mountainville, New York. The Storm King Art Center is located in upstate New York, specific installations, intimate studio artworks, architec-
approximately one hour north of New York City. It is one of the largest sculpture tural works and memorials.’ (Maya Lin website)
parks in the world, covering an area of over 200 hectares (500 acres). The art centre
Lin’s work uses the landscape as the context. Her
is home to more than 100 carefully sited sculptures created by some of the most works look at how we relate and respond to the envi-
acclaimed artists of our time.2 The earthworks by Lin covers an area of more than ronment, presenting new ways of looking at the world
around us. The experience in the landscape is a key
1.5 hectares (four acres) as part of the entire 4.5 hectare site (eleven acres). This element in much of her work. According to her own
project is the largest site-specific art installation that Lin has created to date. website, Lin has created works that ‘merge completely
with the terrain, blurring the boundaries between two-
and three-dimensional space and set up a systematic
Maya Lin’s concept for the work completes her series exploring the ‘water-wave ordering of the land tied to history, language, and time.’
formations’ and using the form of the ocean wave as inspiration for her work.3 The
She is also a committed environmentalist, focusing on
Wavefield is a earthwork project composed of seven parallel rows of ‘rolling, swell- environmental concerns by making the environment the
ing waves of earth and grass’. The undulating waves range in height from three subject of her artworks and by promoting sustainable
building design in her architectural works. She states
meter (10 feet) to approximately five meters (15 feet). The rows are separated by a that she ‘is deeply committed to focusing attention
back to the environment and to ask us to pay closer
1, 3 | MAYA LIN STUDIO (2012): Storm King Wavefield project description. Artist website. http://www.mayalin.com/ attention to the natural world.’
(02.05.2012)
2 | STORM KING ART CENTER (2011): About Storm King. http://www.stormking.org/about/ (04.05.2012)
Ill. 46 (above): Maya Lin in the wave landscape

distance of approximately 12 meters (40 feet), from ‘trough to trough’. The waves
were inspired by the ocean waves and also the mountains surrounding them. The
waves are also completed to the actual scale of real waves. The intention is to cre-
ate a sense that the viewer is actually in the ‘middle of a wave’. The viewer loses
visual contact and reference with the next, adjacent wave and experiences a sensa-
tion similar to that of being at sea. The compound curves allow for a ‘complex and
Ill. 47 | (above): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin, Mountainville, subtle reading of the space in the form of an environment’. The viewer is pulled into
New York, USA. 2009 | spring time green
Ill. 48 | (below): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin, Mountainville, the interior of the wave and a sense of total immersion is created.4
New York, USA. 2009 | autumn colouring
Not only is the form of the earthwork important in the concept but the work at-
tempts to stress the sustainable nature of the work. The topic of sustainability was
addressed by attempting to maximize the use of the soil from the existing site.
Drainage was created naturally underneath the soil and earthworks. Native grasses
were chosen to reduce the need for watering. Attempting to reduce its carbon
footprint during the construction of the piece, the use of plantings, in specific the
planting of 260 indigenous trees, is used to offset the footprint of the work. 77
Holland Cotter of The New York Times, refers to the project as, “neither fatalistic nor
utopian, commemorative nor history-free, natural nor artificial, unstable nor fixed, it
is a puzzle to ponder but also, first things last, a soul-soothing place of retreat”.5

Ill. 49 | (below left): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin, Mountain- 4 | MAYA LIN STUDIO (2012): Storm King Wavefield project description. Artist website. http://www.mayalin.com/ (02.05.2012)
ville, New York, USA. 2009 | standing in the wave 5 | COTTER, H. (2009): Where the Ocean Meets the Mountains. The New York Times, Art & Design. http://www.nytimes.
Ill. 50 | (below right): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin, Mounta- com/2009/05/08/arts/design/08lin.html?_r=1 (03.04.2012)
inville, New York, USA. 2009 | winter shot of the wavefield
chapter five: interesting
macleod tailings reclamation project, canada
Artist / Landscape Architect: Martha Schwartz Partners

Client & Collaborators: Barrick Gold Corporation, Town of Geraldton, Northern On-
tario Heritage Fun Corporation, Ministry of Natural Resources
Timeline of Project: -2000
Site: gold mining
Artist Biography:
Material: earthwork, tailings material Martha Schwartz is the principal of Martha Schwartz
Size: 70 Hectares +/- (170 Acres) Partners in Cambridge, Massachusetts and London,
Location: Geraldton, Ontario, Canada United Kingdom. As a landscape architect and artist,
she has over 30 years of experience, working on a wide
range of projects with world-renowned designers.
The Macleod Tailings Reclamation Project by landscape architect Martha Schwartz She is also a tenured Professor in Practice of Land-
scape Architecture at the Harvard University Graduate
was completed in 2000. The official grand opening of the project happened on July School of Design and lectured extensively about sus-
21, 2000. The project was a joint collaboration between the Town of Geraldton, tainable cities and the urban landscape. Many of her
works have been featured in publications and also in
Barrick Gold Corporation, Northern Ontario Heritage Fun Corporation, Ministry of gallery exhibitions. Her work has been featured in the
Natural Resources, FedNor, Bombardier Inc, and Bell Canada. (MacOdrum, 2011) Chicago Institute of Contemporary Art, Marlborough
Gallery in New York City, New Gallery of Contemporary
The project is located near the Town of Geraldton, Ontario, approximately 275 Art in Cleveland, and Henry Gallery in Seattle.
kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay in Northern Ontario. The site is a closed gold According to her firm’s website, Schwartz’s work spans
mine with over 14 million tons of tailings leftover on site from the mining process. from ‘site-specific art installations to working with cities
at strategic planning levels’ to landscape design. Her
The tailings cover an area of almost 70 hectares (170 acres) and over eight meters focus is on environmental sustainability and creating
(27 feet) deep.1 Unfortunately the huge, flat pile of tailings was also the first impres- awareness of how the urban landscapes can support
‘sustainability through functioning’. Cities are able to
sion visitors and local people received of the Town of Geraldton. The site is located help reduce climate change and support a more sus-
directly at the main highway turnoff and entrance into the town. This ‘eyesore’ tainable approach to diminishing resources. (website)
Martha Schwartz also believes that design creates
motivated the town to change the situation, hoping to at the same to spur economic identity, sense of place and helps to differentiate our-
redevelopment through the reclamation project. selves in an ‘ever-growing uniformity of place as a result
of globalization’.
The intent of the project is to reshape the mining tailings for aesthetic and econom-
Her projects include: Mesa Arts Center in Arizona, Dub-
ics reasons and to potentially insert a new sense of place for the abandoned mine. lin Docklands Grand Canal Square in Ireland, Monte
The town decided to literally make something of the pile of tailings to improve the Laar Central Park in Vienna, Qatar Petroleum Head-
quarters in Doha, Qatar and Natick Mall in Boston, MA.
appearance of the site. The idea was to improve the aesthetics of the site, heighten- She has received many awards, prizes, and Honarary
1 | MSP (2012): Tailing project description. http://www.marthaschwartz.com/projects/tailings_details.html (03.02.2012) Degrees over the years.
Ill. 51 | (previous page): Macleod Tailings Reclamation Project,

Martha Schwartz, Geraldton, Canada
Ill. 52 | (above): Martha Schwartz
ing the visitors experience of them. This is an immediate goal of the project. Over
100 000 highway tourists travel along the Trans-Canada Highway past Geraldton
every summer. The redesign of the tailings primary goal is to provide a reason for
these tourist to stop, stay, and tell visitors about Geraldton and the surrounding
area. (KRINKE, 2001, 143)
The earthworks or sculptural landforms are intended to be a ‘dynamic roadway

edge and gateway into the town’.2 In 1998, Martha Schwartz presented two design
alternatives in a public meeting. Both the ‘Gold Bar’ and the ‘Gold Scroll’ sculpted
the flat tailing pile into earthworks (see conceptual plans on next page). The curvi-
linear design of the Gold Scroll was selected and construction was completed in
Ill. 53 | (above): MacLeod Tailings, Martha Schwartz, 2001 |
2000. The compelling sculptural landform is designed to be much more than just a
view towards Kenogamisis Lake during earthwork construction ‘powerful visual feature’, attracting visitors to stop. (KRINKE, 2001, 143) The project
is to be multi-functional with trails, that invite users to walk and explore the site. The
idea was also that users could walk, bird watch, mountain bike, and in the winter
snowmobile along the trails. The adjacent golf course was extended from nine holes 81
to eighteen onto the tailings. (KRINKE, 2001, 143)
The final form of the earthwork were dependent on the technical constraints of the
the different types and sizes of earth moving equipment (see images below). In par-
Ill. 54 | (below left): MacLeod Tailings, Martha Schwartz, 2001 | ticular, their turning radii provided the guidelines for the grading plan and the final
Earthworks under construction shape of the earthwork.3 According to Schwartz, the primary objective in the project

Ill. 55 | (below right): MacLeod Tailings, Martha Schwartz, 2001
| earthworks under construction with view towards Kenogamisis 2, 3 | MSP (2012): Tailing project description. http://www.marthaschwartz.com/projects/tailings_details.html (03.02.2012)
Lake & golf course expansion
is to balance the cut and fill of the earthwork. Another goal is to maintain a maxi-
mum total earth moving of 150,000 cubic meters. The ‘cut’ is kept to a minimum
because of the higher arsenic levels towards the bottom of the tailing pile. A cap at
the bottom of the pile of tailings is therefore placed, and a maximum of an addi-
tional 5 meters can occur on top of the cap.4 The use of standing water as a design
element was considered, but the water table was not influenced by the regrading.
The storm drainage onsite was also maintained. Traffic sight lines were also consid-
ered and the final form of the earthwork will not impede sight lines for traffic safety.5
Topsoil was also added to the site in order to help in the revegetation of the site. 15 Ill. 56 | (above): MacLeod Tailings, Martha Schwartz, 2001 |
view of earthworks under construction from Highway 11
to 30 centimetres (six to twelve inches) of topsoil was added to the disturbed areas.
Ill. 57 | (below): MacLeod Tailings, Martha Schwartz, 2001 |
The planting plan for the project consisted essentially primarily of native grasses earthworks under construction near entrance driveway
that are golden in colour. The intent of the planting plan was also to choose plants
that do not require watering and can be supported by the soil.6 The master plan also
shows details for tree plantings along Highway 11. (KRINKE, 2001, 145)
According to Rebecca Krinke, this earthwork provides an ‘important contrast to the

Michael Heizer’s “Effigy Tumuli” project, which reshaped tailings into animal shaped
earthworks that are only visible and recognisable from the air. (KRINKE, 2001, 145)
This project should and can be experienced on the ground level. It is to be more
than just an earthwork that can be viewed. Martha Schwartz states that the project
is an attempt to transform the site:
Ill. 58 | (below): MacLeod Tailings, Martha Schwartz, 2001 |
“The Geraldton Mine project reveals the power of design to remake a waste- Earthworks under construction with view towards mine head
land into a new landscape - a beautiful and powerful earthwork. Even more
than an earthwork, this landform is also a cultural artifact, highlighting the
location and role of mining in the life of the town.”7
The project looks at the ‘theme of transformation’ on many levels. The construc-
tion of the earthwork celebrates the confidence and perseverance of the residents
of Geraldton of their future. The project transformed the tailings into earthwork, the
eyesore into amenity, and the derelict landscape into a new recreational resource.
(KRINKE, 2001, 145)
4, 5, 6, 7 | MSP (2012): Tailing project description. http://www.marthaschwartz.com/projects/tailings_details.html (03.02.2012)

Ill. 59 | (top left): MacLeod Tailings, Martha Schwartz, 2001 |
Concept model of the ‘Gold Bar’ earthworks
Ill. 60 | (top right): MacLeod Tailings, Martha Schwartz, 2001 |
Concept plan of the ‘Gold Bar’ earthworks
83
Ill. 61 | (below left): MacLeod Tailings, Martha Schwartz, 2001 |

Concept plan of the ‘Gold Scroll’ earthworks
Ill. 62 | (below left): MacLeod Tailings, Martha Schwartz, 2001 |
Concept model of the ‘Gold Scroll’ earthworks

site visit
geraldton context
The context, historical information, and general background information regarding
the Geraldton area and in particular the site is quite rich and in-depth. The question
is whether a thorough background information analysis is evident in the final design
of the reclamation project? There are many layers of information involving the site
which is critical in understanding the site.
Geraldton is known as the community with ‘a heart of gold’. The statement refers lit-
erally to the gold mining history of the area. The town began as a gold mining camp
Geraldton, Ontario, Canada
once known as Little Long Lac in the early 1930s. During the boom of the gold min-
ing industry, ten gold mines operated in the area for more than 30 years. In 1970,
the MacLeod-Cockshutt Mine closed, the last of the legacy to do so.1 However still
today, the legacy of the mining industry is still visible through the reclamation proj-
ect of the site. The mining history an important aspect of the site but the context,
social structures, history, etc of the area is important to consider especially in deter-
Ill. 63 | (above): Location of Geraldton, Ontario in relation-
mining whether the project can be determined successful in terms of aesthetics and ship to the rest of Canada
economical, ethical, cultural, historical, and ecological aspects of sustainability. Ill. 64 | (below): Location of Geraldton in the relationship
to surrounding towns and cities
Site Location
The site is an old industrial disposal site for the tailings of the former gold mine. It is
located near the town of Geraldton, at the intersection of Highway 11 and Michael
Geraldton, Ontario
Powers Road, in Northern Ontario, Canada. Geraldton is located approximately
300 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay, Ontario. Highway 11 is part of the Trans-
Canada Highway. It literally connects the Town of Geraldton and the Municipality of
Greenstone with the rest of the Canada from the East Coast to the West Coast. It is
the major transport route through the province of Ontario, linking the entire province
ultimately to the rest of Canada. The Michael Powers Road is the turnoff into town
and connects the site directly with Geraldton. The site is also located beside the
1 | GREENSTONE (2012): Geraldton. http://www.greenstone.ca/DiscoverGreenstone/Communities/Geraldton.aspx (15.04.2012)
Geraldton
site location
Ill. 65 | (below): Site location of MacLeod Tailing Recla-
mation Project in relationship to the Town of Geraldton
Kenogamisis Lake
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Kenogamisis Golf
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MacLeod Tailing Reclamation
Project Site Location
Highway
Transcanada )
(Highway 11
Kenogamisis Golf Course which is near the Kenogamisis Lake and surrounded by
the great boreal forests of the Canadian Shield. The highways, golf course, lake,
and forest determine the extent of project.
History of the MacLeod-Cockshutt Mine:2

The MacLeod Mine poured its first gold brick on May 19, 1938. In 1931, the Ma-
cLeod-Cockshutt Mine was staked by Fred MacLeod and Arthur Cockshutt, after Ill. 66 | (above): Historical photo of the MacLeod-Cockshutt
surface exploration led to the discovery of gold bearing quartz veins and following Mine
Ill. 67 | (below): Historical photo of the MacLeod-Cockshutt
the discovery of gold by W.W. Smith at Discovery Point on Kenogamisis Lake. The Mine, aerial view
mine was located to the west, directly adjacent to the Hard Rock Mine property.
The MacLeod-Cockshutt Gold Mines Limited company was founded in 1933 after
the discovery of larger mineralized zones, becoming the fourth gold producer in
the Geraldton District at the time. Underground operations, producing gold, con-
tinued until July 1970. It was the last mine in the area to close due to the drop in
gold market value. The mine produced more gold than any other mine in the area.
Between 1938 and 1970, the mine produced 1,457,728 ounces of gold and mined
over 10,337,229 tons of ore. This accounted for about half of all the gold produced
by the 10 mines in the Geraldton area.
In the 1980’s, Lac Minerals Ltd. undertook mineral studies of existing underground Ill. 68 | (below): aerial photo of the Town of Geraldton.
reserves at the MacLeod-Cockshutt and neighbouring Hardrock mines. The agree-
ment ended in 1997. Due to economical constraints and low gold prices, further
mining activity has not occurred on site. In 1994 Lac Minerals Ltd merged with Bar-
rick Gold Corporation.
In 1996, Barrick Gold Corporation began a rehabilitation program of the tailings

site. The project was coordinated in cooperation with the Town of Geraldton and
the Government of Ontario. The major tailings reclamation project was undertaken
resulting in the development of Geraldton Heritage Interpretative Centre with the
earthworks and expansion of the Kenogamisis Golf Course.
2| Greenstone Economic Development Corporation (2012): MacLeod-Cockshutt. http://www.gedc.ca/article/macleodcockshutt--393.

asp (15.04.2012)
History of the Town of Geraldton:3
The town of Geraldton was founded in the early 1930s following the discovery of
gold on the shores of Kenogamisis Lake. Gold brought the Canadian National Rail-
way line north. The train delivered supplies and equipment up to Kenogamisis Lake.
Soon the townsite sprang up along both sides of the road connecting the mine to
railroad. Newspapers called the new town “Muskeg Metropolis” as quickly devel-
oped out of the swamp or Muskeg. Today’s town is still situated in a long, linear
orientation along its main street. By 1947, the town boomed with more then ten gold
producers within a ten mile radius of the town. Due to gold prices and an economic
downturn, the surrounding mines closed. The MacCleod-Cockshutt mine was the
last to close in 1970. Geraldton could no longer depend on the mining industry as
the main resource. Forestry became the main source of economic growth in the
region. However today, as gold prices continue to rise, mineral exploration is begin-
ning to have a rebirth.
Climate:4 87
The ecoregion of the Geraldton area is marked by warm summers and cold, snowy
winters. The mean annual temperature is approximately 1.5°C. The mean summer
temperature is 14°C and the mean winter temperature is -13°C. The mean annual
precipitation ranges 700-800 mm.

Economy:5
Northern Ontario is known for its mining, forestry, pulp and paper industries, and
hydroelectric power dams. Forestry, mining, and recreation are the major land uses
in the Municipality of Greenstone.
Much of the regions economy is driven by the rich mineral deposits, its huge forest
reserves, and the hydroelectric power potential of the area’s rivers. As the mines
closed down, Geraldton came to depend on the forest products industry as the
3 | Lavoie, E. J. (2006): Some Local History. http://www.greenstone.ca/DiscoverGreenstone/InterestingBits/LocalHistoryClips.aspx

(03.04.2012)
4 | Ecological Framework of Canada (n.d.): Lake Nipigon. http://ecozones.ca/english/region/94.html (05.04.2012)
5 | Province of Ontario (2012); Economy. http://www.ontario.ca/en/about_ontario/EC001036.html?openNav=economy (20.03.2012)
main resource industry. Today, there are no operating mines, but mineral explora-
tion activity continues apace. As gold prices continue to increase, the feasibility of
reopening the mines is becoming more of a reality everyday.
Geography + Geology + Hydrology:6

The site is located in northern Ontario, in the middle of the Canadian Shield. It is
one of the world’s largest geologic continental shields The Canadian Shield is a
large plateau that extends for 8 million square kilometres over eastern, central,
and northwestern Canada, occupying more than two-fifths the total land area of
Canada. Parts of the Shield also extends into Greenland and the northern American
States, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and New York, making it the largest mass
of exposed Precambrian rock found on the Earth. The Great Ice Age (Pleistocene
Epoch) formed the landscape of the Shield today, where vast continental glaciers
covered the entire region. As the glaciers moved south, the ice eroded the land-
scape of its rock mantle, depositing the material on the shield as the ice melted.
Much of this rock material was carried and deposited in the southern parts of the
Shield resulting in rocky, ice-smoothed hill surface with an average surface relief of
30 metres. The area is characteristically marked with lakes and rivers, muskegs (or
bogs), swamps, densely forested rocky and rugged terrain. Ill. 69 | (above): Typical lake in the Canadian Shield, Northern
Ontario
The Shield contains many lakes and rivers. Geraldton is located between Lake Ni- Ill. 70 | (below): View over Kenogamisis Lake
pogon and Long Lake. It is also north of Lake Superior, the largest Great Lake. The
town itself is located on Kenogamisis Lake.
Vegetation:7
Northern Ontario is covered in parts by vast boreal forests, including black and
white spruce, jack pine, tamarack, poplar, white birch, and balsam trees. The forests
in the southern part, support natural ecosystems and forestry. The further north, the
6 | Province of Ontario (2012): Geography of Ontario - Canadian Shield. http://www.ontario.ca/en/about_ontario/004195.
html?openNav=geography (20.03.2012)
7 | Province of Ontario (2012): Ontario’s Natural Resources - Forests. http://www.ontario.ca/en/about_ontario/004464.
html?openNav=natural_resources (20.03.2012)
forests become less dense. The dominant vegetation is mixed forest, characterized
by stands of white and black spruce, balsam fir, jack pine, trembling aspen, and
paper birch. Dry sites are dominated by jack pine with secondary quantities of black
spruce. In warmer locations, red and white pine occur. Wet sites contain tamarack
and black spruce with a ground cover of moss and lichen.
Ecology:8
Geraldon is located in an ecoregion that surrounds Lake Nipigon and extends
westward from the north shore of Lake Superior to Lake St. Joseph in northwestern
Ontario, the Midwestern Canadian Shield. Characteristic wildlife includes moose,
black bear, lynx, snowshoe hare, wolf, and caribou. Bird species include the sharp-
tailed grouse, American black duck, and wood duck.
8 | Province of Ontario (2012): Ontario’s Natural Resources - Fish and Wildlife. http://www.ontario.ca/en/about_ontario/004465.
html?openNav=natural_resources
89

site inventory + analysis
1. View from highway towards terraced earthworks
Topography + Geology:
The original industrial site was relatively flat after the left over tailings from the min-
ing were stored on-site and graded over. Today, the topography of the site quite
dramatic. The earthworks showcase raised pyramid form mounds and flowing,
contoured terraces moving through the site. The earthworks rise up considerable
from the level of the highway which at highway level is approximately 341.4 metres
(1120 feet) above sea-level. The topography of the earthworks seem to draw your
attention towards certain elements. The curvilinear form creates interesting levels
and flow throughout the landscape of the earthworks.
2. View from pathway towards centre. Mine head in background.
The earthworks were created by using the leftover tailings that were stored on-site.
Over 150,000 cubic meters of cut and fill was used in the project. Geologically the
site is located in the middle of the Canadian Shield. Being an industrial site, the site
held tailings from the nearby gold mine industry. Fourteen million tons of tailings
from the mines have was left on site. These tailings covered almost 70 hectares
(170 acre) area of land with a depth of over eight metres (27 feet). Industrial con-
tamination is expected. There is an added depth of 15 cm of topsoil (humus) on-site
for the reclamation project for planting.
3. View of earthwork pyramid mound back towards highway.
4. From mine head & highway view of entire earthworks with
centre on top of hill. Picture of restored mine head.
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earthworks: pyramid mounds
4.
earthwork connection in golf course
earthworks: terraced landform ‘scroll’

Restored
Mine Head
0 40 100m pathway system
limit of project extent
Vegetation:
The site is located in the middle of the Great Boreal Forest of the Canadian Shield,
part of the great forestry legacy of Northern Ontario. The forest is a very significant
natural feature that draws the eye from the site outwards. The site is also surround-
ed by an artificial golf course, which was also completed around the same time as
1. Transition from aspen forest to golf course fairway
the earthworks. The reclamation project used native trees, grasses, and flowering
plants in its redesign. Aspen trees are found along the edges of the earthwork con-
tours, further defining the edge. The rows of trees also separate different sections of
the landscaped site, creating various spaces. The earthworks are a significant man-
made feature of the redesign.
Microclimate:
The different earthwork mounds offer different climatic conditions. Situated on top
of a mound, the user is more exposed to the elements like wind and sun as there is
not really shelter. The conditions are different when walking along the bottom edge
of the earthworks, where plants and mounds block wind and offer a more sheltered 2. View from site into the boreal forest landscape and of
highway vegetation
climate.
Materiality:
The materiality of the site is kept as natural as possible. Wood, gravel, and native
vegetation (native grasses, perennials, and trees) were chosen. The driveway is as-
phalt. The picnic areas near the Interpretive Centre is laid out in brick with red earth
tones. The choices of the materiality of the site, is well selected. The focus remains
on the forms of the earthworks. The choices of vegetation, etc. is made to enhance
the visibility and legibility of the earthwork.
3. Earthworks native grasses & aspen trees in background.
4. Graveled area beside driveway near entrance.
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(High
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ay
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Husky Gas Canada H naturalized vegetation area
-
Station Trans manicured vegetation: golf course
earthworks vegetation: native plantings
highway vegetation: grasses
natural vegetation: boreal forest
gravel surface area

Restored
Mine Head paved surface area
Site Circulation:
The main entrance into the site is a driveway off the Michael Powers Road which
travels into town. Heavy truck transport runs adjacent to the site along the Trans-
Canada Highway (Highway 11). The driveway wraps its way around the different
earthwork elements towards the Interpretative Centre on top of the hill. The drive-
way ends with a traffic circle, with a planter in middle, and parking spaces for the 1. Highway signage for the Interpretive Centre.
visitors of the centre. There is an inner pathway system that meanders through
the site, along the earthworks, and further connects to the golf course. Visitors are
allowed to go “off trail”, however most circulation occurs on the trail systems. The
trail system connects the reclamation site with the golf course and eventually to
Kenogamisis Lake. The golf course pathway systems and fairways are incorporated
well into the design. The fairways and greens define the outer extent of the site.
Although the course is well integrated into the overall design of the site, it is evident
that the design of the golf course was completed by another designer.
Site Space + Function:

The location of the aspen trees create separate spaces in the site. The earthwork 2. Internal signage for the pathway system
mounds also seem to define their own space. The golf course transitions into the
earthwork with mini elements of the earthworks used as bunkers and obstacles for
the golf course. The meandering form of the pathway also further distinguishes the
various spaces of the site as it travels in between the pyramid mounds. It also trav-
els along the highway towards the lake and into the golf course. The driveway up to
the centre has a parking lot and turn-around area at the top. The Interpretative cen-
tre has a lookout platform with views over the forest landscape of Northern Ontario.
Outside the centre, there are picnic tables, garbage receptacle, and an information
point describing the pathway systems and information to the site.
3. Memorial for Bryan Nelson Morrison who initiated the project.

Current Use Patterns:
4. Entrance into the Interpretive centre & earthworks.
The Centre is open from 9:00 until 19:00 for five months of the year (May until end
of September) It is mainly a stopping/resting point for travellers driving through on
the Trans-Canada Highway. There is little pedestrian use and only a few visitors per
day. The site however does acts as a linkage between the history of Geraldton as a
present day ‘ambassador’. (MacOdrum, 2011)
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1.
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(Highway site function, spaces + circulation
Husky Gas Highway
ada
Station -Can functions
Trans pathway circulation
information point
vehicular circulation
parking area
earthwork pyramid facilities
locations
rest area
existing features
waste disposal
Restored interntal site spaces
Mine Head
external site spaces (golf course)
0 40 100m
Views / Visual Character of the Site:
The main views outwards from the site is towards the great, vast boreal forest of
the Northern Ontario Shield. The forest attracts your attention as the greatness of
the forest draws your view. From the vantage point on top of the earthwork, you are
1. View off of Trans-Canada Highway looking towards the
able to see over the horizon for kilometres. The restored shaft mine across the high- Earthworks & Interpretive Centre.
way also holds you attention. There are clear sight lines into the golf course from
the east of the site. Also golfers are able to view the earthworks from the course.
From the highway, the centre’s building is the first thing that gets noticed from the
highway as it sits on top of the earthworks. The earthwork forms are seen second,
probably because vegetation has grown over the dramatic forms.
Electrical power lines run parallel along the site, beside the Michael Power Road
into the town of Geraldton. The electrical poles and lines unfortunately cut into the
view of the earthwork, especially when directly in front of the centre.
Noise:
2. View from near the Interpretive Centre direction towards
There is heavy noise the comes from the transport trucks that travel through on Geraldton and power station
Highway 11. Transport truck traffic is quite regular and as the trucks pass the earth-
works, the sound quite loud. There is also recreational noise from golfers and golf
carts that is connected to the site. The occasionally tractor is also heard off of the
course. An electrical hum from the power station adjacent to the property is also
constant when near the entrance of the centre.
Existing buildings and structures:

Across the highway near the entrance, there is an electric power transformer sta-
tion. Directly across from the centre, there is a gas station at highway intersection.
The renovated old mining head structure is also across the highway. It is a historical 3. View from entrance driveway towards the restored mine
element that connects to the site. The Interpretative Centre houses a display of the head.
local history and information of the area and is located on top of the main earthwork 4. View for on top of one of the pyramid shaped earthwork
mound towards the Interpretive Centre and Mine Head.
feature. It draws the most attention of the viewers into the site.
Unfortunately the design of the Interpretative Centre imposes on the complete land-
scape picture. Opportunities were missed perhaps in using the old heritage mining
head as the centre. This would have lead to a more authetic treatment of the mining
history of the site. The earthworks would also have been able to stand alone and
become the feature of the area.
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1.
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(Hig
Husky Gas Highway views from earthworks
Station -Canada
Trans views from interpretive centre
views from highway into site
earthwork feature locations
structural feature locations
electrical power lines
Restored
Mine Head noise from golf course
0 40 100m noise from vehicular traffic

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(Highway site inventory plan
Highway
-Ca nada naturalized vegetation earthworks: terraced
Husky Gas Trans landform ‘scroll’
Station manicured vegetation earthworks: pyramid
mounds
earthworks vegetation earthworks golf
course
highway vegetation
aspen tree rows
natural vegetation information point
parking area
gravel surface area
Restored facilities
Mine Head paved surface area
rest area
waste disposal
spatial perception site analysis
Kenogamisis
Golf Course
location 4
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locations of spatial anaylsis

location 1
Earthworks Mound, Geraldton Interpretative Discovery Centre (refer to plan) Panoramic stitch of the view from location 1
11.08.2011, 10:00, Observer: Maggy Lehenbauer

Weather: Sunny, partly cloudy, warm summer morning, 22ºC
The first site chosen was a spot in the middle of the landscape, on top of one of the
mounds. The mound is located just off the main pathway and along the adjacent
golf course.
Spatial Analysis: Related to the Senses
Gravitational pull: There is more than one gravitational pull in the site. Your attention
is drawn from the three design elements over the open field situation underneath.
Rows of trees help create boundaries and borders, focusing the attention. Perhaps
unfortunately the Interpretive Centre pulls your attention away for the landscape as
well. The earthworks to either side of the building however, brings your attention
back over and provides a balance to the visual invasion.
Movement: There is a sense of flow here. The rows of aspen trees and pathway
structure give the site an organic feeling. The tree placement helps direct the viewer
to where their attention should be. Even the type of tree planted, suggest move-
ment. The aspens whistle in the wind, trembling, shaking, and dancing in the wind. Impression of the earthworks | quick sketch of the pathway
weaving around the trees and earthworks edge
Balance: There is a certain sense of balance between the design elements from the
vantage point on top of the large earthworks. There is a feeling of equalization for
the viewer. The viewer is at the same level with the building directly across the open
meadow. The two elements are at the same level. It gives a sense of tension be-
tween the design elements, each balancing the other.
Temperature: The site has a sensation of warmth. The August sun warms the entire
space, even through the partly cloudy sky. This warmth envelops the viewer espe-
cially during the summer months because of the golden colour palette of the plant-
ings. The tall grasses also provide a sense of protection. Its height and structure
form a wall around the viewer.
Descriptive Keywords: release, pride, throne,
open, exposed, rise above
Smell: There is a smell of rain in the distance which mixes together with the heavy,
sticky, humid air. The sweet grassy meadow smell has earthy undertones which
Message from the landscape: After all the years calms the senses.
of waste piled upon me, I finally beginning to
feel free. The animals are returning here. The Taste: The choice of materiality, plants, and colour palettes is well selected for the
insects are eagerly searching for food. Buzzing site. There is a sense of authenticity. The artificial feel of the earthworks gives off a
away. Working everyday. Rich in diversity. The sense of contrast with the surroundings. Even the character of golf course, which in
sun beams its rays down on me, warming my
inner soul. Even the wind rustles my leaves and itself fabricated, fits seamlessly into the site. The planting choices seem to balance
blades of grasses to say hello. The traffic doesn’t the form of the earthworks, bringing a softness to them.
brother me much anymore. I can hardly here it
now. It fades into the background and I have Visual: There are clear sight lines through the site. The is a light feeling of sight be- 101
more important things to tend to. Although I am cause of the colouring. There is nothing dark and dreary. In the distance, the dark,
perhaps only still young, growing more everyday, vast forests draws the eye. The rich colour palette of greens, browns, and golds
there is a sense of peace. It brings a sense of
calm if only to even one weary traveller. It is a rest make for a visually pleasing situation.
I deserve, after years of work, exploitation of my Tactile: The connection to the ground is soft to the touch. Grass mounds gently
lands. There is a new sense of purpose now, a
sense of belonging. As I sit overlooking the cen-
prickle and poke the hand. The main design element is the native grasses that seem

tre, I image the people coming to say hello. My to invite a sense of softness, however in reality provides a certain sharpness.
vantage point over the landscape, over the trees
and forests that have become my friends. I feel
Auditory: The site provides a various range of sounds. The adjacent truck traffic is
as if I am no longer embarrassed, no longer be- heard from the highway. Activity from the golf course is evident. Golf carts driv-
ing misused. Despite that, I have a sense of pride ing by, golfers chatting, lawn mowers cutting grass, and tractors running. Nature is
for a history that should not be hidden. Even my
represented as well. The birds chirping, leaves rustling on the trees, insects busily
neighbour, the golf course, plays its role. I grow
stronger each day. Wiser everyday. The layers of buzzing, and grass blades waving in the wind. Even the physical act of rapping on
history run deep. Even if not all can understand the ground, gives off a dull knocking sound - solid and soft.
my intention, I know I have a role to play, I know
I have brought back a sense of wonder and be-
longing back to the place. I am settling into my
place once again.
location 2 Panoramic stitch of the view from location 2
In front of the Geraldton Interpretative Discovery Centre (refer to plan)
Weather: Full Sun, hot 29ºC
The second site chosen was a spot in front of the centre, at the bottom of the
earthwork landscape. The main earthwork piece of the site is located just off the
intersection of Highway 11 and the main road into the Town of Geraldton. It is one
of first impressions of the site, viewers receive when traveling on the highway.
Impression of the earthworks | blind sketch of landforms
Spatial Analysis: Related to the Senses
Gravitational pull: The weight of the earthworks is balanced towards the two land-
scape pyramid cones. Each cone invokes their own strength and the eye is drawn
and pulled equally towards both elements. There is a sense of tension between the
two elements, neither cone overpowering the other. Each cone has the same pro-
portion and size and can individually stands up by itself, however, together there is
a dramatic power between the two elements. Impression of the earthworks | quick hand sketch
Movement: There is a upwards motion through the site, up towards the earthwork Impression of the earthworks | pastel rendering of the colours
mounds. The mounds emit a feeling of power, strength, and presence. They mark found in the landscape picture
the spot, establishing its place in the landscape, proclaiming “here is my spot!”
Balance: The chosen placement of the earthwork mounds are important for the
overall balance of the site. Each landform seems to have its perfect amount of
spacing and sizing. The proportions of the mounds are perfectly balanced. In con-
trast to the earthworks, the planted rows of Aspen trees, meanwhile, seem a bit out
of place. The trees are relatively small and have not quite grown yet. Some plantings
are missing and need to be replaced, breaking up the linearity of the spacing. The
powerful statement that consequential planting of tree rows cannot quite yet be
made. The rows of trees however, further insinuates the linearity of the earthworks
and enhances to deliberate rigidness of the landforms.
Temperature: A feeling of warmth envelops the site. The colour choices in the veg-
etation and the hot summer sun glow off the site. The tall grasses form a safety wall
and provide a strong sense of warmth and protection. The open exposure of the
site, however does not shade from the hot summer sun.
Message from the Landscape:
The hot sun is beating down on the spot. It is a Smell: The grassy carpet of vegetation create a sweet, earthy meadow undertone.
bit exposed on the side of the earthworks. In front
The smell of rain is still in the distance and the hot, heavy, sticky, humid art over-
the wide open space with earthworks spouting
upwards with the back towards the centre. In the powers the sense of smell.
tall grass, there is a sense of being hidden from
Taste: There is a good choice of taste in regards to materiality and plantings. As
everything. The traffic does not seem at times so
loud or overbearing, although it is always there. in the previous site, the choice of native vegetation brings a certain authenticity to
There is a new sense of temporality. The mounds the site. Although the landforms are obviously man-made as opposed to naturally 103
are artificial however the earthworks themselves occurring, the artificiality of the earthworks is balanced well with the plantings. The
seem like they have been here forever. The land-
forms seem to disappear into the vegetation. A plantings seem to ground the earthworks. The design is not over-complicated with
new rhythm here is establishing. The history of frivolous elements. There is a sense of genuineness and simplicity in the choices.
the site translated into the earthworks. If the his- The earthworks speak for themselves.
tory of the site was not known, could connec-
tions be made of the mounds and mining? There Visual: The view of the highway is much more apparent and visible in this location.

are stories to tell here and I am here to tell them Although the relatively close proximity to the highway, the viewer still receives a
if you will listen.
sense of disconnection and detachment from it all. The highway does not seem to
impede the sight lines. The viewer attention is draw from the earthworks to the sur-
rounding forests. The traffic on the highway distracts only for a moment.
Tactile: Again because of the choice of vegetation, there is a soft connection to the
ground. The design element is the native grasses. The mounds prickle and scratch
the surface.
Sound: The highway traffic is much more evident here. The heavy transport trucks
moving along Highway 11 are at times loud and distracting. The sounds of birds
chirping, insects buzzing, grass blades moving bring the attention back to the na-
ture. The ground provides a dull knocking sound which is both solid and soft.
location 3
Panoramic stitches of the view from location 3
Intersection of Highway 11 and Michael Power’s Road (refer to plan)
Weather: Full Sun, hot 30ºC, exposed
The third site chosen is at the intersection of the two main transportation corridors,
Trans-Canada Highway, connecting to the rest of Canada, and Michael Power’s
Road with Geraldton. The location is the gravel lot in front of the centre’s highway
signage. The centre is on top of the main earthwork feature landform.
Spatial Analysis: Related to the Senses Impression of the earthworks | pastel rendering of the colours
found in the landscape picture
Gravitational pull: The weight of the earthworks pulls the viewers attention. The
building at top of the hill seems to gently slope upwards. It is the thing that is no-
ticed first and pulls the attention upwards.
Movement: There is an upwards movement towards the centre at the top of the
earthworks. The building with its cantilevering lookout platform is a strong state-
ment. The eye is also drawn along the curvilinear, organic feel of the contours of the
earthworks and follows the flowing movement of the earthwork forms.
Balance: The balance point lies within the forms of the contours, organically weav-
ing in and out. The highway intersects between the ‘natural’ forest landscape on the
one side of the highway and the earthworks on the other. Perhaps because of the
unexpectedness, the attention of the user is drawn towards the earthworks.
Temperature: The open exposure of the location does not shade from the hot sum-
mer sun. The transportation nature of the location is further enhanced by the grey of
the gravel and the black of the asphalt. The hot sun burns on the asphalt.
Descriptive Keywords: open, intersected, turbu-
Smell: The gravel parking lot and asphalt smell off of the highway overheating in the
lent, transition, overwhelming sun is very apparent at this location.
Message from the Landscape: Looking towards Taste: The highways and gravel lot here take away from the authentic feel of the
the earthwork, the contours are speaking. Like site. From this location, the artificiality of the site is enhanced. One can see that this
terraces stepping upwards towards something. site is no longer original. The contours of the earthworks are magnified, stepping
Marking something. The roar of the transport
trucks, in the background, distracts from the upwards. The old mine shaft head, is tastefully restored however, the Interpretive
message of the landforms. What are these land- Centre building on top of the hill seems unfortunately out of place.
forms supposed to be? It is a crossroads point
or perhaps an entrance to something else? The Visual: The view of the highway is very evident in this location. The viewer is located
welcome sign to what place? The mounds inter- at the intersection of the main highways, there is nothing to block the sight lines. 105
sect a point between travel and to what? There You cannot get away from the linearity and tunnel vision the highway creates. It is
does not seem to be anything around but trees,
difficult to disconnect the transportation highway from the landforms. However,
rocks, sky, and these two highways. All these
elements meeting here at this exact point. It is from this vantage point there is an open view of the building and entire layout of the
coincidence or purpose? What is it about this earthworks. It is possible from here to see the whole picture of the elements. The
place? Literally nothing to be seen for miles, this contours of the land art is very evident. The row of trees further line and enhance

installation draws your attention, makes you stop
and ponder, and perhaps appreciate what is and the contours.
once was here. Tactile: The gravel of the parking area is hard and rather uninviting. Voluntary plants,
depending on your perspective weed or wild flowers, establish themselves in the
gravel, adding a touch of softness to the surface.
Sound: The highway traffic is much more evident here. The heavy transport trucks
moving along Highway 11 are louder and more obvious. There is really nothing here
to distract or block the sound coming from the highways.
location 4
Panoramic stitch of the view from location 4
Walk up along the Entrance Driveway (refer to plan)

Weather: Sunny, at times partly cloudly/overcast, hot 29ºC
Associative Spatial Perception

Descriptive Keywords: open, intersected, turbulent, transition, overwhelming
Message from the landscape: As I walked up and around the site, energy encircled
the landforms. The shape of the landscape, the position of the trees, the size and
choice of the native grasses, encompassed the entire site. As you moved through,
the trees and landforms seem to move and shift along with you, providing new van-
tage points and perceptions of space. There is never the same picture twice. The
earthwork mounds grow larger and smaller. At certain points, the landscape forms
then give way to open spaces, disappearing completely into the site. The earth-
works frame what it is you are supposed to look out, what it is you are to perceive.
They tell a story. The narrative of the landscape, is shown through the simplicity,
yet powerful contours of the forms. The centre itself almost disappears at certain
points. Then when you least expect it, walking around the corner, another aspect
and narrative is revealed. The rows of trees also undertones the contour ridges of
the earthworks, providing sight lines and direction to where you are to look. Again
as you move, the trees seem to move with you.
The elements are seemingly placed in an organic fashion, however with purpose,
intention, and meaning, providing cues for a new way of seeing and perceiving. The
landforms definitely play with the perceptions of space and shape. Temporary. The
earthworks will change. The spaces will develop. The trees will grow larger. However
there is no shade in the hot summer sun. There is no real opportunity to interact with
the earthworks, only through sight. How is it be possible to ‘get on’ the landforms?
Are the earthworks meant to be more then just visual? Is the history of the site made
107
visible through the landforms? Are the earthworks enough to attract visitors?
The earthworks attempt to bring the Genius Loci (the spirit of place) into the spot-
light. There is a sense that the earthworks not only add interest to the site but rather
celebrates the rich history and context of its previous life.

location 5
Mound at Entrance Driveway (refer to plan) Panoramic stitch of the view from location 5

Weather: Sunny, at times partly cloudly/overcast, hot 29ºC
Landscape Aesthetic: Wöbse Method

Spatial Expression and Design in the Landscape:
The earthwork is bordered by the Highway 11 and the main road into town. The
landscape sits above the noise of the traffic. The noise from the traffic is constant
as the transport trucks continually move goods across Canada. The Highway 11 is
Impression of the earthworks | quick sketch
like a lifeline from east to west, literally connecting all parts of the great vastness of of the rows of aspen trees and centre in
background
the country.
In the distance, the trees of the great forests of Northern Ontario stretch out as far
as the eye can see. Where the trees seem to end, the blue summer sky takes over.
The endless sky, a mixture of clouds and blue hovers above. The feeling of open-
ness raises above the ‘noise’, drowning out the distractions and providing a sense
of height and freedom.
Underneath the place I sit, the tall, soft grass encircles me, almost protecting me.
The native grasses and flora waving in the wind. The vegetation blending the ele-
ments into a complete picture. The rows of aspen trees separate the space into
individual rooms and guides the eye to the visual aspects interesting to the site.
The dominant colour is green with touches of gold as the summer colours begin to
turn into fall.
Sounds are coming from everywhere. The insects buzzing and birds chirping all
around me. Nature has returned to this place however, the hum of the distant power
generators can be heard, along with the traffic of trucks driving by.
Landscape Character:irschfeld Method
The earthworks gives the site a feeling of soft-melancholy. The hills rise out from the
landscape, softly jutted outwards, like little bumps on the horizon. The late summer
begins to play on the trees and the surrounding landscape. Colours change. The
leaves begin to turn into promise of beautiful fall colours. Greens turn into golds.
Golds into bronze and reds. The grass blades reaching up, waving in the breeze,
fully grown. There is a sense of changing and transition. Not just regarding the
change of the seasons but the landscape itself. The landscape is preparing itself for
the end of a cycle. For the deep winter sleep before it can begin anew. The cycle of
life will start again. Transitioning, developing, changing. Fitting for such a place. 109
Spatial Analysis Conclusions:

The earthworks, although difficult to access because you must go ‘off-path’, offer
a real authentic, aesthetic experience. The choices in materiality, vegetation, and
form work well with the site. The form of the earthworks create spaces of unex-

pectedness and wonder. The different levels and vantages points allow for a multi-
level experience. It is not only something you look at, but should you choose to,
the earthworks are quite exciting to explore. Once the aspen trees have grown to
full-size, what than will the experience be like. The question of time and how the
site will develop is interesting to consider. As the site transitions from an industrial
wasteland into a new place of interest, the question remains if the earthworks really
do remake the site into a new cultural artefact, highlighting the history of the min-
ing site. The sculptural landform is much more than just a powerful visual feature.
Not only does it attract visitors to stop, it is multi-functional with trails, inviting users
to walk and explore the site. The incorporation of the adjacent golf course into the
design is also well accomplished. The project is definitely an aesthetic success.
chapter six: findings
discussion
As the land art movement grew, so did the number of artists concerned with the en-
vironment and the idea of moving away from the gallery space into the landscape.
The 1960s and 70s, marked a beginning of exploring ideas about site-specificity.
The space of art was no longer just a blank canvas, rather a real place. (KWON,
2004, 11) Artists looked to environmentally based interventions that grew out of the
idea of site-specificity and a growing sense of urgency concerning environmen-
tal problems. The seventies was a time when many artists began exploring ‘der-
elict landscapes’ like abandoned mines and landfill sites and proposed new ways
through art to ‘reclaim these for civilization’. (STRELOW, 2004, 156)
Besides engaging with environmental material, the emphasis on a particular place

was one common trait these artworks had. There were of course projects, often
earthworks, that made no obvious environmental claims, however, the main inten-
tion was one of ‘making a statement’ in the landscape. Others focused more on the
impact of human development on the environment where the works were informed
by pragmatic and educational purposes. Sustainable design goals of combining
social and aesthetic concerns with environmental and economic, resonated strongly
with the ideas of site-specific design. Projects like Agnes Denes’ Tree Mountain,
showed the idea of art lasting generations and becoming an educational tool used
in the explanation of the importance of sustainable initiatives to future generations.
The thought that the artwork will eventually change back over time into a ‘new type
of native forest’ speaks to the thorough consideration of sustainability the artist had
in her work. The purpose of including the human aspect of physically planting the
trees, strengthens the ties the contributors have with the project, perhaps ensuring
the project’s success. The contributors action of planting a tree and knowing that
they are responsible for the tree, can change to way the one tree is seen. In a sense,
accomplishing this for one tree, will result in the good of the whole project.
The idea that land art can be considered a sustainable art must mean that the intent
of the artist’s work must be more than something that is to be viewed. Sustain-
able art distinguishes itself from environmental and land art in the sense that it is
promoting art that is in alignment with the key principles of sustainability. Art that
is produced with thorough consideration of the impact the work can have on its
environments; socially, culturally, economically, historically, and biophysically, in my
mind can be considered sustainable. The question of whether land art in itself can
be considered sustainable, has garnered criticism on one hand but also approval
on the other. I believe it is safe to say, that early land art should not be classified as
sustainable however, just as systems change and develop over time, so does the
making and concepts behind land art. Again, Denes’ project, displays many of char-
acteristics of a sustainable land art work.
Contemporary art historians and curators Maja and Reuben Fowkes argue the idea
of sustainable art originated with land art. It grew in response to the end of the Cold
War in 1989, when a new awareness of the global character as ecological and social 113
problems emerged. (KASTNER, 1998, 15) They also suggest, sustainable art takes
on a negative position towards some key practitioners of the land art movement
and condemns those practitioners who showed little concern for the environmental
consequences of their work. Those who for example ‘treated the landscape like a
giant canvas with a bulldozer for a brush’. (KASTNER, 1998, 15) Critics of some of
the early land artists believed it was perhaps the ‘most macho post-war art pro-
grammes’, attempting to ‘recast the land with ‘masculine’ disregard for the long

term. (KASTNER, 1998, 15) This can be said with projects by Heizer and even some
of Smithson’s work. However, the fact that land art primarily deals with a re-con-
nection to the landscape and how it we should view this said landscape, mitigates
the negativity of those types of the projects. As with any movement, land art and its
idea developed more complexity for its concerns with the environment. The natural
development into concerns of environmentalism is shown as land art transitions into
environmental art. Artist Lynne Hull suggests that the true nature of land art should
move towards an ecological art, that aims to care for and nurture nature through ar-
tistic actions, instead of imposing an intervention on the landscape. (BRADY, 2007,
297) If land art is seen as a way to care for landscapes, the use of land art than in
postindustrial sites is fitting.
Land art can be categorized into three main categories: Landscape as the Canvas;
Landscape as part of the Land Art; and Landscape is the Land Art. The early works
done by land artists referred to the landscape as a new place to put down their
artwork. It was a canvas in every sense of the word, as they wanted to move from
the commercialisation of the gallery space happening in the early 1970s. Land art
than developed further where projects began seeing the landscape as an actual part
of the works. No longer were artworks just being sited in the landscape rather the
landscape was used in the art. Different scales of intervention occurred. Some proj-
ects remained more at a human scale, while others, especially earthworks, looked
to make a large project in the landscape. This developed further where the land-
scape was the also the actually land art and the land art was the landscape at the
same. MacLeod Tailings is an example of this idea. The earthworks seemingly rise
out of the landscape, melding into one. Driving towards the site from the highway,
the earthworks are there to greet you. The entire project reads as one. At the same,
it is obvious that the landscape of the earthwork is in fact something man-made. As
artificial as it is, the earthwork due to the vegetation seems natural, like it is meant
to be there. It has been over ten years since the construction of the project, there-
fore, the vegetation has played a great role in this transition. Succession is slowly
taking over the dramatic, terraced landform of the earthwork, reclaiming it as the
new landscape.
This element of time is another interesting aspect in which all these types of proj-
ects have in common. Temporality and how the works relate to time adds another
dimension to the projects. Time can and will eventually change the works to some-
thing perhaps not even considered. Everything in this world is affected by time. The
temporality and ephemeral component of the works must be a given component.
Nature has the ability to take back the landscape whether it is supposed to or not.
This is especially seen in postindustrial, abandoned sites. It is always amazing to
see how quickly vegetation can take over a site in a few short season. Designers
must consider this element of time and succession especially in landscape archi-
tecture. A landscape can change and appear considerable different after only a few
years. This is particularly evident in the MacLeod Tailing Reclamation Project. From
the preindustrial condition of a forest landscape, to the industrial tailings storage
compound, to eventually the reclamation earthworks, the site changed a number
ways and levels of over its history. It will not stop changing. The dramatic earth-
works landscape of ten years ago is softened over time. No longer are the extreme,
terraced earthworks so visible as it was shortly after construction. The vegetation
has taken root and slowly succeeded the earthworks. Nature seems to take back
even the ‘designed work’. It doesn’t discriminate.
Robert Smithson looks at this element of time as an opportunity. He wanted his

work to go through the process of decay. This idea was particularly interesting in
relationship to the postindustrial. The element of entropy and decay is evident in his 115
works. He intended Broken Circle Spiral Hill to essentially ‘decompose’ over time. In
this context, the influence of Smithson’s writing and works in the discussion of the
postindustrial is still highly influential. Smithson began early in his work to look for
clues and traces in wastelands. The work of Smithson still remains important today
and never really lost its significance. New generations of artists and professionals
concerned with the changing economical, social, geological, ecological conditions
of the world, continue to find his works and ideas inspiring and relevant. Smithson’s

interest in the ‘despoiled landscape’ has expanded notions of what is viewed as
beautiful. To many contemporary designers, mines, urban wastelands, and other
damaged sites have a unique beauty attached to them, perhaps because the sites
are filled with potential, there is no apparent wrong way to work in these sites.
Smithson realised this and his work has inspired countless artists and designers to
‘engage nature as a process, rather than as scenery’. (KRINKE, 2001, 126) His ‘land
reclamation’ projects, attempted to bridge the concerns between industry, ecology,
art, and society. In this sense, his ideas are sustainable and have lasted many de-
cades. Smithson’s work attempted to recover postindustrial sites, not to return them
to what they once were but to make them into something new. As MASKITT (2007,
330) suggests, ‘The works highlight for us that these postindustrial sites are part of
our environment. But equally importantly, these sites have their own histories, which
are a part of what they now are’.
Land art has the ability to incorporate at some level the history of the site in its
intent. That is not to say all land art is therefore successful. In Smithson’s work, he
helps us to see the postindustrial differently by turning the sites into works of art.
(MASKITT, 2007, 330) I argue that in today’s time, that purpose of ‘art for art sakes’
is no longer enough. However, the works done in the past have allowed us to see
what else is possible, that sites should not only be returned to what it once was but
should embrace its history. It is not possible to learn from past mistakes if we are
able to ‘cover up’ the past and forget it. The ability to turn an ‘eyesore’ into a place
where something new and unexpected can happen is very important. I believe land
art has that potential.
The attempt was made in the thesis to find projects that combined the different
components of aesthetics, landscape/site functions, and cultural/social meaning in
regards to the rejuvenation of postindustrial landscapes. Unfortunately, some of the
project described here, only looked at one aspect. What is clear to see in all of the
projects, is the intent of changing people’s perspectives of the site so that they view
it in a new way. What land art does extremely well is in its ability to allow for the op-
portunity to reflect. It causes the viewer to ask questions: why is it there and what is
it suppose to mean? If the purpose of the art work is to question its existence and
reason for being there, perhaps that is enough. Art therefore has the ability to create
discussion and awareness of importance issues.
Today the complete regeneration of postindustrial landscapes is being demanded.

Rightfully so, these projects go beyond ‘beautifying and recultivating derelict land’
but also involve culture, aesthetic and social aspects to the same extent. (STRE-
LOW, 2004, 156) In other words, not only are we reclaiming the landscape ‘lost to
industry’ but we are in fact realising that industry is a part of our heritage and land-
scape image. This change of thinking happened because of our change in percep-
tion to these waste landscapes. A paradigm shift was made in our understanding of
nature and landscape, creating the basis for the integration of an industrial, cultural,
social and environmental reality. (STRELOW, 2004, 156) This idea that the reclama-
tion of postindustrial landscapes is not only about the technical aspects of how the
site will function but also makes consideration to the aesthetic, history, context, and
cultural aspect involving the site.
Landscape architecture and environmental art function similarly by interpreting

the relationship of humans to their environment both spatially and visually. Thayer
suggests that the goal of a sustainable landscape should be the transformation of
culture, which can result in the ‘taming of technology, the emergence of a new envi-
ronmental ethic, a new measure of life quality, and a substantially broadened sense
of community including not only humans, but all life’. (THAYER, 1994, 192) Thayer
also states that art has the ability to anticipate society and that ‘artful interpretation’ 117
of the landscape can offer possibilities in which sustainable landscapes can be eas-
ily identified, emphasised, evaluated, and made visible. (THAYER, 1994, 192) The
experience of beauty in the landscape is a necessary component of fostering a sus-
tainable community and in developing an environmental ethic. The ability to recall
somatic, sensory experiences of place can lead to new perceptions of the rhythms
and cycles to sustain life. “These depend on the immediate apprehension of new,
unexpected forms, spaces and sequences, and the simultaneous memory of former

experiences, and conceptions, of landscape space and form”. (MEYER, 2008, 12)
The aesthetic experience in nature has a recuperative, transformative power. (MEY-
ER, 2008, 6) Therefore, conclusions can be made that land art is able to enhance
the aesthetics experience of a place, in terms of the postindustrial, using that ability
can in itself transform the site and bring a new level of rehabilitation to it.
The suggestion that artful interpretation in the landscape can lead to a sustainable
landscape is something worth considering. Fantasy and imagination are not only
necessary for human survival, but art is necessary to offer ‘alternative visions and to
explore and make sense out of the unseen’. (THAYER, 1994, 192) Designed land-
scapes will need to be able to provoke reactions from those experiencing them, in
order for the user to become aware of how their actions affect the environment, and
to care enough to make changes. (MEYER, 2008, 6) People need to feel a connec-
tion to a site to be able to care for the site. In this way, aesthetics can play a role
in helping change perspectives. The appearance of the designed landscape, more
than just an interest in its form attempts to explain how ‘immersive, aesthetic expe-
rience can lead to recognition, empathy, love, respect and care for the environment’.
(MEYER, 2008, 7)
The aesthetic experience of the MacLeod Tailings Reclamation Project is one of au-
thenticity and fascination. The earthworks, although a bit difficult to directly access
because you must go ‘off-path’, offer a real experience that causes reflection and
questioning to the purpose of the land art. The choices in the materiality, vegetation
and landscape form itself works well in the site. The forms of the earthworks create
spaces of unexpectedness and wonder. As you walk around one corner, something
new happens and causes the visitor to see another perspective of the site. The
different levels and vantages points allow for a multi-level experience, invoking a
different response that is quite personal to the individual. Visitors, who completed a
questionnaire on-site regarding their visit to the project, experienced the earthworks
quite differently. One visitor reflected that the intent of the earthwork is “to cover the
barren remainders of the mine, to point upward, towards the future” and goes on
to further comment that the MacLeod Tailings project is “an interesting project - I
think reclamation of a natural landscape should contain reminders/memories of it’s
previous lives, as this one does!” Another states, “I feel that I have experienced a
small touch of what it was like before we changed things”, speaking to their reflec-
tion of the perceptional experience of the earthwork. Another visitor to the work
says, “having driven through this area all my life, I appreciate the ‘new’ view of the
Geraldton turn-off”, validating the intent to project to improve the aesthetics of the
site, heightening the visitors experience of them, and provide a new vision for the
area. The earthworks are not only something for the visitor to look at, but the earth-
works are also to be explored. The works will continue to develop and change as
the aspen trees and vegetation have grown fully. The question of time and how the
site will develop is interesting to consider. As the site transitions from an industrial
wasteland into a new place of interest, the question remains if the earthworks really
do remake the site into a new cultural artefact, highlighting the history of the min-
ing site. The sculptural landform is much more than just a powerful visual feature.
Not only does it attract visitors to stop, it is multi-functional with trails, inviting users
to walk and explore the site. The incorporation of the adjacent golf course into the
design is also well accomplished.
Landscape architecture works are therefore, cultural products with distinct forms
and experiences that evoke attitudes and feelings through space, sequence, and
form. Like literature and art, images and narratives, landscape architecture can play
a role in building sustained public support for the environment. (MEYER, 2008, 10) If
land art is able to achieve this, does it than mean that all land art is sustainable? In 119
a certain sense, yes. Like Denes’ project, how people associate themselves with a
project, will determine its success. It would be interesting to know, whether the proj-
ect has gone according to plan and if those originally involved still take ‘steward-
ship’ over the mountain tree forest. This social component is something many of the
artists attempt in their work. However, as with Hermann Prigann’s work, it is some-
times difficult to see the connection. His very theoretical Terra Nova project looked
to combine an interdisciplinary joining of ecology, art, and social design to create

solutions for all industrial sites. The problem is that every site is different. There can
not be a ‘cookie cutter’ response suitable for all postindustrial sites. It is a common
argument against land art, whether land art is truly site specific. Unfortunately the
term has been so overused, similar to the term sustainability, it is losing its mean-
ing and significance. Julie Bargmann suggests the term sustainability should be
replaced with regeneration.1
1 | Verzone, C. (2006): Terragrams Podcast: Julie Bargmann. http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2006/1/31_Ju-
lie_Bargmann.html (30.05.2012)
One of the main problem still occurring today is that no real preemptive plan is
made for what industrial sites should become after the mining ceases. A plan
should be in place before the mining even begins. Governments should demand
that detailed post-mining plans be included in any new mining project. No longer
should it be an afterthought. Mining sites are often private industry that create
‘externalized costs’ that the community then must than bear. (BERGER, 2012, 30)
The contamination, aesthetics, social, economic problems are no longer only the
concern of the industry but also for all people, not only just those living in the area
but beyond. A closure of a mine can bring about a number of issues that need to be
dealt with. If the main employer of the region, it can mean the economic downturn
for the town. Can the redesign of the site bring other opportunities to the town like
tourism or a stronger pride of community?
Often landscape architects are not hired to design parks on greenfield areas, but
asked to come in afterwards to ‘clean up residues leftovers from previous actors’.
(BERGER, 2012, 30) Landscapes architects are allowed to ‘reconceptualize, renew,
and refit poor outcomes’ after environmental systems have been devastated by
previous users and asked to come up with creative plans that work well. (BERGER,
2012, 30) In the United States that are over 600 000 inactive and abandoned mine
sites. (BERGER, 2012, 35) Mining companies have not always internalized environ-
mental consequences of extraction (BERGER, 2012, 37) The potential for landscape
architecture projects in therefore quite great. The postindustrial landscape design
has become more mature as many sites often have to deal with the major challeng-
es of the contamination of the site. Multi-disciplinary collaborations with engineers,
scientists, landscape architects are therefore now more than ever necessary to cre-
ate economically feasible, design solutions. The public’s ‘new’ accepting perception
of a specific postindustrial design language as increased as landscape architects
use images that are part of the cultural context but by giving them new interpreta-
tions. “Design is a cultural act that intervenes in systems to elicit specific response”.
(HILL, 2012, 48) The good thing with postindustrial sites, is the ability to try new
things. Sites can not be ruined, therefore the door to creativity is open. Land art and
artist in general, have this ability to see the possibilities within a site.
This is not to say that a land art solution is fitting for every project. However there
is a place for it. As WEILACHER (1996, 30) states, “landscape art will be indispens-
able as a language in the search for a new interpretation of landscape ... and will be
capable of contributing to the changed understanding of cultural landscape”. Art
has and will always be a part of human cultural. It is who we are. It is therefore only
natural that some attempts be made with land art to overcome these problems or
raise attention to these said problems. Whether projects are considered successful,
is another topic. I believe that the MacLeod Tailing Reclamation Project is a good
example of how earthworks can be used in creating a image in the landscape. The
project has overcome many obstacles and has literally flourished into a new land-
scape while still respecting its past. It has refined the identity of Geraldton and given
a new sense of pride to the community. The highway turn-off towards the town is no
longer something to be embarrassed about but rather a feature to be celebrated. 121
conclusion
The relationship between land art and landscape architecture is a complex one.

Both influence our perception in regards to the land, how we see ourselves in the
landscape, and our reactions to the changing nature of landscapes. One of key
contributions land art has made in the discourse of landscape architecture is in its
ability to help restore to landscape architecture its ‘old and largely lost concern for
the intricate melding of site, sight and insight’. (HUNT, 1996, 6) Land art has the abil-
ity to respond to the landscape and bring about ideas of art and design. It can also
be regarded as inspiration. Land art’s great appeal to landscape architecture rests
upon its emphasis on process, invocation of abstraction, and confidence in its pur-
pose of being art. Maybe that is why landscape architects are hesitant to associate
themselves as artists. The idea that if associated with an art, the worth and profes-
sionalism of landscape architecture will be put in question. However, land art in gen-
eral has contributed to the development of the modern landscape language and the
understanding of how “place intersects with time and temporality, how ideas haunt
cultural appropriations of land, and how the representation of land as art is funda-
mental ambition of all landscape architecture”. (HUNT, 1996, 7)
Land art’s role in landscape architecture, in specific as a design method to improve

and breathe new life into postindustrial landscapes is shown in Martha Schwartz’s
MacLeod Tailing Reclamation Project. The project connects ideas regarding land
art, aesthetics, and sustainability in postindustrial landscapes and helped change
the postindustrial landscape into a new place of beauty and wonder. The project
not only looks at the aesthetics of the site but attempted to bridge the economical
situation of the area, ecological and environmental concerns, social, and the histori-
cal aspects of the site through its design expression. The goal of the design was to
improve the entrance situation to the Town of Geraldton, in hopes to attract tourists
to the town and spur the economics of the site. In this sense, land art can be used
as a tool in the discussion of aesthetics and cultural, historical, experiential, and
ecological aspects of sustainability in postindustrial landscapes. Land artists like
Robert Smithson concentrated on observing specific phenomena and processes of
a particular place, paying attention to the site’s particular qualities. They began their
works understanding the experience at the human scale and through their inter-
ventions, seeking to reveal the ‘long-term processes that formed such a place and
enabled such an experience’. (MEYER, 2000, 198) Smithson continues to influence
new generations of artists and professionals concerned with the changing economi-
cal, social, geological, ecological conditions of the world. They continue to find his
writings, ideas, and works, especially those regarding the discussion of the postin-
dustrial, inspiring and relevant. The work of Smithson remains important today and
has not lost its significance, especially in the discussion of postindustrial. Smithson
began early in his work to take an interest in ‘waste landscapes’ and expanded the
notion of what beautiful truly is. His land reclamation projects are inspiring because
they attempt to bridge industry, ecology, art, and society. Things that all landscape
architects attempt to do. Smithson’s work attempted to recover postindustrial sites,
not to return them to what they once were but to make them into something new.
His works attempted to show us that postindustrial sites are a part of our environ-
ment and culture. Just as important, the sites have their own histories, which contin-
ue to define what they are today. (MASKITT, 2007, 330) This idea that postindustrial
is already a part of our culture, whether we want to do accept that concept or not,
justify, on one side, an new appreciation for what these sites really are and on the
other side, new treatments in the reclamation process. Land art can be used for
both of these aspects by exploring the process of the sites and to ultimately precipi-
tate a new perspective and new possible design solutions of the postindustrial.
Land art can be a tool used in the regeneration of postindustrial landscapes. The
projects outlined in the thesis attempted to explain the role that land art has in
postindustrial landscapes, especially post-mining sites. That is not to say, land art 123
should be the only tool that can be used but it has been proven successful in cer-
tain situations. Not every postindustrial site warrants the incorporation of land art,
however, land art has the ability to change our perspectives of the way we experi-
ence and perceive a site. The examples outlined in the thesis show the potentials
these sites can have. Landscape architects and artists are relied upon to come up
with new, interesting scenarios and techniques, deciding on what needs to be done
next in the remediation process. Land art can be one of these techniques used,

exploring the dynamics of human use versus nature. Through artistic interventions,
the medium of nature can be exaggerated. The works begin to question the real
nature of the postindustrial. This is possible because there is no apparent wrong
way of dealing with these sites. This is the attraction of artists where anything goes.
This artistic exploitation of nature can be in fact, restorative. Sites need to be more
than a renewal of the aesthetics. However, aesthetics help in realigning our percep-
tions of the spaces we find ourselves in. If the role of aesthetics is to help us see
postindustrial landscapes differently, aesthetics have than achieved their goal. Is
that enough? A change in perception is necessary if we are really to understand our
role in rejuvenating postindustrial sites. If our understanding changes, perhaps then
we may begin to understand the role our choices have in the environment. That
our actions have consequences. It is perhaps idealistic to believe that we may one
day decide to stop destroying the ‘natural landscape we have left’, however until
that day comes, design solutions must be considered to rejuvenate postindustrial
landscapes. Land art challenges our understanding and perceptions of waste land-
scapes.
Land art is an expression of culture, bringing people’s attention to cultural phenom-

enons that are undervalued or exploited, especially in a society where our depen-
dency on natural resources is staggering. How people relate to landscape is one
of the most significant expressions of culture. (BEARDSLEY, 2006, 8) If how people
react to a site is important, than their reaction to something ‘ugly’ speaks to how
perceptions need to be addressed. The dialogue between environmental art and
the postindustrial begins with an appreciation for the postindustrial landscape. To
have an appreciation is to have a sensitive understanding of the aesthetic value of
something. Through the interventions and representations of the postindustrial by
artists like Burtynsky, Serra, and Smithson are beginning to change the idea of what
is beautiful. These sites are aesthetically appreciable in spite of their previous func-
tions and histories. (MASKITT, 2007, 327) The aesthetic experience of postindustrial
landscape art allow us to see previously unseen possibilities and to related to the
postindustrial differently as before. Projects that are relate to the interesting lead us
to think differently over what is we experienced. The unexpected response to a site
is something that land art does extremely well.
Land art captures the energy and expression of place by raising questions about
the temporal and spatial experiences in landscapes. Landscapes are dynamic and
develop over time. Land art is used as a way to develop experiences within a land-
scape so that people can connect with and ultimately care for all aspects (including
the postindustrial) of the world around us. (MEYER, 2008, 18) Aesthetics, in terms of
the physical characteristics and sensory qualities, can have a “recuperative, trans-
formative power” of the perception of landscapes. (MEYER, 2008, 6) As within the
role of land art, the aesthetics of the work, can transform the landscape.
In conclusion, I believe the MacLeod Tailings Reclamation Project can be considered

an example of sustainable land art and succeeded in its intent to reshape the mining
tailings for aesthetic and economics reasons. It inserts a new sense of place for the
abandoned mine and ultimately for the Town of Geraldton and surrounding com-
munities. The aesthetics the site heightens the visitors’ experience. The redesign
of the tailings provides a reason for tourist to stop, stay, and tell about their visit
to Geraldton. The earthworks create opportunities to question the reason for them
being there. I believe the statement made by Martha Schwartz is accurate, “The
Geraldton Mine project reveals the power of design to remake a wasteland into a
new landscape - a beautiful and powerful earthwork. Even more than an earthwork,
this landform is also a cultural artifact, highlighting the location and role of mining in
the life of the town”.1 How we express ourselves in the landscape, can be a catalyst 125
for change in our understanding of ideas that explore the patterns of social, cultural,
environmental, and artistic systems in a landscape. Art installations are cultural arte-
facts, that interact with the environment, becoming remedial interventions. They can
help people give serious thought to the worth of the environment and how it relates
to them. As MEYER (2000, 243) suggests, landscape architecture projects that re-
veal a landscape’s ‘essential structure and character’ and creates aesthetic experi-
ences, can perhaps lead to developing a better consciousness, sense of belonging,

and understanding of the environment we find ourselves in. The MacLeod Tailings
Reclamation Project is definitely an example of how this can be accomplished.
1 | MSP (2012): Tailing project description. http://www.marthaschwartz.com/projects/tailings_details.html (03.02.2012)

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VERZONE, C. (2006): Terragrams Podcast: James Corner, http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2006/3/23_

James_Corner.html (03.01.2012)
VERZONE, C. (2006): Terragrams Podcast: Julie Bargmann. http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2006/1/31_Ju-

lie_Bargmann.html (30.05.2012)
VERZONE, C. (2009): Terragrams Podcast: John Beardsley, http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2009/7/1_

John_Beardsley.html (03.01.2012)
appendix
WEILACHER, U. (1996): Between Landscape Architecture and Land Art. Basel: Birkhäuser.
WEILACHER, U. (2008): New landscape after Land Art. http://www.lai.ar.tum.de/fileadmin/lai/redakteure/documents/publika-

tionen/ (15.03.2012)
list of images + credits
Images, drawings, and photographs by author unless otherwise noted
Chapter One: Framework
Ill. 1: joevare (2009): Spiral Jetty 06. fotopedia. http://www.fotopedia.com/items/flickr-3591314238
Ill. 2: SPEKKING, R. (2006): Landscape Park Duisburg Nord (CC-BY-SA-3.0). Wikimedia Commons. http://upload.wikimedia.org/
wikipedia/commons/0/0f/Landschaftspark_Duisburg-Nord_-_Garten_im_Bunker.jpg
Ill. 3: D.I.R.T. Studio (2012): Vintondale Reclamation Park, Vintondale, Pennsylvania. http://www.dirtstudio.com/images/012.jpg
Chapter Two: Context

Ill. 4: LA SEUR, C. (2010): Exposed coal seams adjacent to reclaimed areas. Plains Justice Today blog. http://plainsjusticeblog.
files.wordpress.com/2010/11/aee006a.jpg
Ill. 5: LONG, R. (1967): A Line Made By Walking, Richard Long. England: Richard Long Website. http://www.richardlong.org/
Sculptures/2011sculptures/linewalking.html
Ill. 6: DILLION, L. (2011): Cancelled Crop, Dennis Oppenheim. Sculpture: Media and Process blog. http://sculptureoverview.
blogspot.co.at/2011/11/16-earthworks.html
Ill. 7: Whitney Museum of American Art (2012): Non-site, Robert Smithson. New York: Whitney Museum of American Art online.
http://whitney.org/ForKids/Collection/RobertSmithson
Ill. 8: HEIZER, M. (1985): Water Strider Effigy Tumuli, Michael Heizer. http://p1.la-img.com/842/17232/5775205_2_l.jpg
Ill. 9: greenmuseum (2006): Time Landscape, Alan Sonfist. greenmuseum.org online museum http://greenmuseum.org/c/aen/
Images/Ecology/time-xl.jpeg
Ill. 10: johnphastings (n.d.): Double Negative, Michael Heizer. flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/11396078@N07/1110993237/
sizes/l/in/photostream/
Ill. 11: art daily brasil (2012): Running Fence, Christo and Jeanne-Claude. http://www.archdaily.com.br/35977/arte-e-arquitetura-
christo-and-jeanne-claude/
Ill. 12: OLSON, M. (2012): Mile Long Drawing, Walter De Maria. ROLU blog 2012. http://rolu.terapad.com/index.
cfm?fa=contentNews.newsDetails&newsID=134877&from=archive
Ill. 13: DACS (2009): 7,000 Oaks, Joseph Beuys, 1982. London: Tate 2012. http://www.tate.org.uk/art/images/work/AR/
AR00745_10.jpg
Ill. 14: GOOCH, C. (2010): Little Sparta, Ian Hamilton Finaly. Carrie’s is this art blog. https://carriegooch.wordpress.com/tag/ian-
hamilton-finlay/
Ill. 15: CAMPBELL, K. (2006): Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson. In: Icons of Twentieth-century Landscape Design. London: Frances
Lincoln. p.123
Ill. 16: joevare (2009): Spiral Jetty 06. fotopedia. http://www.fotopedia.com/items/flickr-3591314238
Ill. 17: CAMPBELL, K. (2006): Spiral Jetty, Robert Smithson. In: Icons of Twentieth-century Landscape Design. London: Frances
Lincoln. p.122
Ill. 18: RUSSELL, J (2010): Untitled: Johnson Pit #30, King County gravel pit. http://earthworksnearyou.blogspot.co.at/2010/08/
jen-graves-when-art-becomes-dog-park.html
Ill. 19: Spiral Cage (2010): Untitled: Johnson Pit #30, Robert Morris, detail of steps. flickr. http://www.flickr.com/pho-
tos/35237104136@N01/4975358752/
Ill. 20: Spiral Cage (2010): Untitled: Johnson Pit #30, Robert Morris, detail of steps. flickr. http://www.flickr.com/pho-
tos/35237104136@N01/4974744403/in/photostream/
Ill. 21: HEIZER, M. (1985): Effigy Tumuli: Water Strider, Michael Heizer. http://p1.la-img.com/842/17232/5775205_2_l.jpg
Ill. 22: HEIZER, M. (1985): Effigy Tumuli: Catfish, Michael Heizer. http://p2.la-img.com/842/17232/5775205_3_l.jpg
Ill. 23: LUDB (n.d.): Effigy Tumuli: Catfish, Michael Heizer. The Center for Land Use Interpretation. http://clui.org/sites/default/
files/ludb/il/7623/5663134504_dcbd1a0de7_o.jpg
Chapter Three: Appreciation

Ill. 24: BURTYNSKY, E. (1985): Mines #17, Edward Burtynsky. http://www.edwardburtynsky.com/
Ill. 25: LONG, R. (1977). A Circle in Alaska, Richard Long. http://www.richardlong.org/Images/2011webimages/bw/alaskacirc.jpg 133
Ill. 26: GOLDSWORTHY, A. (1984): Frozen patch of snow, Andy Goldsworthy. Andy Goldworthy Digital Catalogue. http://www.
goldsworthy.cc.gla.ac.uk/images/l/ag_02881.jpg
Ill. 27: HAIMAN, T. (2011): Mill Creek Canyon Earthworks. Herbert Bayer. Landscape Design + More blog. http://thlandscapede-
sign.blogspot.com/2011/01/herbert-bayer.html
Ill. 28: BURTYNSKY, E. (1985): Mines #19, Edward Burtynsky. http://www.edwardburtynsky.com/
Ill. 29: BURTYNSKY, E. (1996): Nickel Tailings No. 34, Edward Burtynsky. http://www.edwardburtynsky.com/
Ill. 30: DE VOS, M. (2006): Sea Level, Richard Serra. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Richard_Serra_Sealevel1.jpg
Ill. 31: Alexis (2012): Bramme for the Ruhr-District Sculpture, Richard Serra. http://anewarthistory.blogspot.co.at/2012_01_01_
archive.html
Chapter Four: Interventions

Ill. 32: Artists Lists (2011): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin. http://artistslists.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/img_20072.jpg
appendix
Ill. 33: GORGONI, G. (1970): Smithson at the site of Spiral Jetty. Los Angeles: The Museum of Contemporary Art. http://historyo-
fourworld.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/smithson_0002.jpg?w=720&h=589
Ill. 34: SMITHSON, R. (1971): Broken Circle Spiral Hill, Robert Smithson. http://www.robertsmithson.com/drawings/spiral_hill_
broken_circle_300.htm
Ill. 35: SMITHSON, R. (1971): Broken Circle Spiral Hill, Robert Smithson. Amsterdam: Stedelijk Museum 2012. http://www.ste-
delijk.nl/en/now-at-the-stedelijk/public-program/talking-film/broken-circle-spiral-hill-the-remade-film
Ill. 36: SMITHSON, R. (1971): Broken Circle Spiral Hill, Robert Smithson. Project Land Art Contemporary. SKOR 2012. http://
www.skor.nl/eng/site/item/land-art-contemporary?single=1
Ill. 37: SECKER, B. (1985): Hermann Prigann. Bettina Secker Fotographie. http://bettina-secker-foto.de/img/augenblicke/8.jpg
Ill. 38: CONTATTI CircoRu (n.d): Yellow Ramp, Herman Prigann. http://www.circoru.org/BUFFET/wp-content/uploads/herman-
gelbe.jpg
Ill. 39: Lausitzer Bilder (2009): Yellow Ramp, Herman Prigann. http://lausitzer-bilder.de/seenlandschaft/ab2/altdoeberner-see/
aussichtspunkt-gelbe-rampe.jpg
Ill. 40: STRELOW, H. (Ed.)(2004): Yellow Ramp, Herman Prigann. In: Ecological Aesthetics: Art in Environmental Design: Theory
and Practice. Basel: Birkhäuser. p.153
Ill. 41: STRELOW, H. (Ed.)(2004): Yellow Ramp, Herman Prigann. In: Ecological Aesthetics: Art in Environmental Design: Theory
and Practice. Basel: Birkhäuser. p.153
Ill. 42: michaelpeng (1982): Agnes Denes. flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/michaelpeng/3649668063/
Ill. 43: CHOI, J. (2011): Tree mountain: a living time capsule, Agnes Denes. Land Artists. http://jihyunchoi.files.wordpress.
com/2011/11/agnesdenes_meghivo.jpg
Ill. 44: LUNDAN, M. (2007): Tree mountain: a living time capsule, Agnes Denes. flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/
mpl73/1146425583/
Ill. 45: CHOI, J. (2011): Tree mountain: a living time capsule, Agnes Denes. Land Artists. http://jihyunchoi.files.wordpress.
com/2011/11/agnesdenes_meghivo.jpg
Ill. 46: Kobre Guide (n.d.): Maya Lin. http://www.kobreguide.com/public/IMGlargephotoMayaLin1.jpg
Ill. 47: Open Spaces Feng Shui (2009): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin. http://openspacesfengshui.com/site/wp-content/up-
loads/peopledots.jpg
Ill. 48: CARLSON, L. (n.d.): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin. imgfave. http://pull.imgfave.netdna-cdn.com/image_
cache/1253406635357291.jpeg
Ill. 49: LIN, M. (2009): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin. http://www.mayalin.com/
Ill. 50: Storm King (2011): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin. inhabitat. http://inhabitat.com/nyc/wp-content/blogs.dir/2/
files/2011/07/storm-king-wave-field.jpg
Chapter Five: Interesting

Ill. 51: own image: LEHENBAUER, M. (2011): Macleod Tailings Reclamation Project, Martha Schwartz, Geraldton, Canada
Ill. 52: JOURDEN, J. (2007): Martha Schwartz. Archinet Features. http://cdn.archinect.net/images/1200x/ai/aiu_MS_LG.jpg
Ill. 53: MSP (2001): MacLeod Tailings Project, Martha Schwartz. http://www.marthaschwartz.com/images/tailings_01.jpg
Ill. 55: MSP (2001): MacLeod Tailings Project, http://www.marthaschwartz.com/images/tailings_02.jpg
Ill. 59: KRIKWOOD, N. (Ed.)(2001): Concept model of ‘Gold Bar’, Martha Schwartz. In: Manufactured Sites: Rethinking the Post-
industrial Landscape. New York: Spon Press. p. 144
Ill. 60: RICHARDSON, T. (Ed.)(2004): Concept plan of the ‘Gold Bar’ earthworks, Martha Schwartz. In: The Vanguard Land-
scapes and Gardens of Martha Schwartz. London: Thames & Hudson.
Ill. 61: RICHARDSON, T. (Ed.)(2004): Concept plan of the ‘Gold Scroll’ earthworks, Martha Schwartz. In: The Vanguard Land-
scapes and Gardens of Martha Schwartz. London: Thames & Hudson.
Ill. 62: KRIKWOOD, N. (Ed.)(2001): Concept model of ‘Gold Scroll’ Martha Schwartz. In: Manufactured Sites: Rethinking the
Post-industrial Landscape. New York: Spon Press. p. 144
Ill. 63: CBC (2010): Location of Geraldton, Ontario in relationship to the rest of Canada. Canadian Broadcast Corporation. http:// 135
www.cbc.ca/strombo/images/MapOfCanada.jpg
Ill. 64: NAVTEQ (2010): Location of Geraldton in the relationship to surrounding towns and cities. Microsoft Corporation 2012.
http://www.bing.com/maps (30.05.2012)
Ill. 65: own image: LEHENBAUER, M (2011): Site location of MacLeod Tailing Reclamation Project in relationship to the Town of
Geraldton.
Ill. 66: Premier Gold Mines Ltd. (1937): Historical photo of the MacLeod-Cockshutt Mine. Premier Gold Mines Ltd. Historic Mine
Photos. http://www.premiergoldmines.com/s/hardrock.asp
Ill. 67: Premier Gold Mines Ltd. (1937): Historical photo of the MacLeod-Cockshutt Mine. Premier Gold Mines Ltd. Historic Mine
Photos. http://www.premiergoldmines.com/s/hardrock.asp
Ill. 68: GDEC (2012): aerial photo of the Town of Geraldton. Greenstone Economic Development Corporation. http://www.gedc.
ca/upload/images/live.jpg
Ill. 69: P199 (2006): Typical lake in the Canadian Shield, Northern Ontario. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Canadian_Shield_On-
appendix
tario.jpg
Ill. 70: own image: LEHENBAUER, M (2011): Kenogamisis Lake, Geraldton, Canada
All other images, drawings, plans, and photographs by author: Maggy Lehenbauer ©2012
Aerial image used in plans: Imagery (2012): Cnes/Spot Image, DigitalGlobe, GeoEye, Map data. Google 2012. http://maps.
google.ca/maps?hl=en&tab=wl (31.05.2012)
Survey Questionnaire
visitor questionnaire results
This short survey is being conducted to gather information in part of a master's of landscape architecture
This short survey is being conducted to gather information in part of a master’s of landscape
thesis project.
architecture The thesis
thesis examines
project. the role
The thesis and function
examines earthworks
the role (or land
and function art) has in the
earthworks hasreclamation
in the rec-of
post-industrial
lamation sites, in specific
of post-industrial the in
sites, Geraldton
specific Mine Project. AsMine
the Geraldton stated by the landscape
Project. Results may architect, this
be published
inproject reveals
the final thesisthedocument.
power of design
Everytocomment
remake a wasteland into a new landscape
is much appreciated. - a free
Please feel beautiful and power-
to elaborate
ful earthwork.
where Results
necessary. mayyou
Thank be published in theand
for your time finalhonesty.
thesis document. Every comment is much appreci-
ated. Please feel free to elaborate where necessary. Thank you for your time and honesty.
Visitor 1 Visitor 2 Visitor 3
1. How often do you visit the reclamation site? Q1. 1st visit 1st visit 1st visit
1st visit yearly monthly weekly almost daily

Q2. New Westmin- Toronto, Ont Barrie, Ont
2. Are you a local resident or a visitor to Geraldton?
ister, B.C.
Yes No, visiting from where?
3. What age are you? Q3. 66+ 36-45 36-45
>10 11-17 18-25 26-35 36-45 46-55 56-65 <66
we noticed the
Q4. Interest On business interesting build-
4. What is your main reason for stopping today?
ing
Q5. yes, born here no no
5. Have you previously heard of the Geraldton Mine Projects? 1943
No Yes, how? driving back
the monolithic home, noticed
Q6. yes structure from the
6. Have you noticed the earthworks (landforms) before? Hwy 589 building
Yes No, what did you notice?
to transform
wasteland into
7. What do you think the intent of the earthworks in the landscape is? Q7. slime from steps useful and pleas-
mines ing property
8. In a couple of sentences (or just some key words) describe your impressions, perceptions of the land- Q8. it looks better graduating having grass
scape. How do you feel while experiencing this landscape? now grassy steps growing on the
tiered ground is
my favorite
9. On the back of this page, please draw a quick sketch of the first thing that draws your attention (don't
Q9. - sketch 1 -
worry, doesn't need to be a masterpiece - only a few lines can say it all ;)
10. Do you plan on returning to this site? Q10. no, only if pass yes yes, if we ever
through drove by again
Yes No, why not?
Q11. - - very interesting
11. Any other thoughts, comments, concerns?
Visitor 4 Visitor 5 Visitor 6 Visitor 7 Visitor 8 Visitor 9 Visitor 10 Visitor 11
3 or 4 visit in 11 years 1st visit 1st visit 1st visit 1st visit 1st visit whenever I have 1st visit
company
Sundridge, Ont Maumee, Ohio, yes local Carmen, MB Saint John, N.B. Thunder Bay, Ont 1/2 time local Sarnia, Ont
USA, 43537
66+ 56-65 18-25 56-65 66+ 56-65, 65+ 56-65 46-55
wanted to look around the building site seeing brought Touring - to see site & land- pamphlets on wil- break in travel
again and take a rest from driving daughter scaping tailings. In derness trails
1976 it was a desert 137
yes: here in the centre & in news- yes: previous
papers, also visited relatives here visit yes no no yes, newspaper & yes, locals no
about 55-60 years ago contacts in the area
yes: here in the centre & in news- yes

papers, also visited relatives here no no, rock no yes yes, locals no
about 55-60 years ago formations
to cover the barren remainders of

the mine, to point upward, towards ? - - - - to make it look trying to invoke a
the future? natural theme
it is relaxing, open & airy, but very good it’s beautiful Wild dense - - a bit dry looking this not sure
dry since there are few plants/ and clean country time of year
trees.
sketch 2 sketch 3 - sketch 4 - - sketch 5 and words -
appendix
‘the building’
yes probably in a year or tow yes yes maybe yes yes yes, locals no, probably will
when I’m making another trip from not be traveling
mid-northern Ontario to the “Great this route for a long
North-West” time
an interesting project- I think - - - - - needs signs up -

reclamaion of a natural landscape highway coming
should contain reminders/memo- east & west
ries of it’s previous lives, as this
one does!
results continued
Visitor 12 Visitor 13 Visitor 14 Visitor 15 Visitor 16 Visitor 17

Q1. couple of times per year 1st visit 1st visit 1st visit 1st visit 1st visit
Q2. Thunder Bay, Ont Picton, Ont Picton, Ont Combined Locks, Wiscousin, USA yes no
Q3. 46-55 46-55 46-55 46-55 26-35 46-55
we are going around Lake Supe-

Q4. work vacation interest in the rior, Came up to Lake Nipigon and my friend wanted to see work
centre’s info wanted to go further.
Q5. yes, lived around this area no no no no no
Q6. no no no yes no yes
rehabilitation to return to original I believe it the works of a great flood ? ?

Q7. - improve aesthetics topography that moved water, rock, and land
of area. into great masterpieces of nature.
Q8. having driven through this a lot more looks like a natural I feel that I have experienced a small the history is awesome. it seems unnatural
area all my life, I appreci- pleasing than it used setting- 1st time touch of what it was like before we except you forgot to write
ate the ‘new’ view of the to be this way changed things. how ‘alcohol’ was brought
Geraldton turn off. to the native people
Q9. no sketch but the words - - sketch 6: duck - -
‘the mine shaft thing’
Q10. yes, lived around this area maybe, long drive no, distance no, too many other places to explore yes not sure
it is my sincere hope that you enjoyed seeing old pictures
very impressed continue to educate people and wondering if the library -
Q11. - - with the pre and preserve the land. Also providing the offers more indepth about
post information wonderful opportunities to fish, hunt, other places in Geraldton.
and relax (I’m not against mining)
sketches from questionnaire
Visitor 18
1st visit
Arnaud, Manitoba
56-65
came with my daughter, she

is doing her thesis on the
reclamation project sketch 1 sketch 2 139
yes, but only because of my
daughter
sketch 3
yes
to make something new out

of the old mine
appendix
one day, if there was a
reason to drive through
Northern Ontario again
- sketch 4 sketch 5 sketch 6

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blending nature:

Land Art as Expression of Culture, Aesthetics and Sustainability in the Regeneration of

A thesis submitted in this month of June 2012 by:

In partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of

Master of Landscape Architecture |

of the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria |

Department of Landscape Architecture | Institut für Landschaftsarchitektur (ILA)

6 Chapter One: Framework 68 Chapter Four: Interventions

26 Chapter Two: Context 78 Chapter Five: Interesting

chapter one: framework

In recent years, attention has be given to the redevelopment of postindustrial land-

chapter one: framework

chapter one: framework

13 | Verzone, C. (2009): Terragrams Podcast: John Beardsley, http://www.terragrams.com/Site/Terragrams/Entries/2009/7/1_John_

The aesthetic experience is one of exchange, something that is seen, appreciated,

chapter one: framework

hypotheses & aim of work

Land art is an expression of culture, bringing people’s attention to cultural phenom-

chapter one: framework

The primary research method undertaken in this thesis is an intensive, multilevel

chapter one: framework

chapter one: framework

Lastly, background information of the project area (Hintergrundinformationen zum

Associative spatial perception is a method of analysing the cognitive understanding

chapter one: framework

In additional to conducting a through analysis of the project, over a period of six

chapter one: framework

industrial landscape. Arguably, the Industrial Revolution marked a major turning

chapter two: context

Allen Carlson, philosopher of environmental aesthetics, states “cultural landscapes:

chapter two: context

reclaiming the landscape

chapter two: context

What is then required to create a successful, sustainable reclaimed landscape?

chapter two: context

the land art movement

chapter two: context

chapter two: context

tion by accepting its consequences: deterioration and obliteration. (PARSY, 2000,

chapter two: context

1, 2 | HULL, L. (2010): What is Environmental Art?. GreenMuseum Online Museum: http://greenmuseum.org/what_is_ea.php

chapter two: context

land art + landscape architecture

chapter two: context

Landscape architects are perhaps hesitant to associate themselves as artists. The

chapter two: context

land art as reclamation

chapter two: context

chapter two: context

chapter two: context

chapter two: context

Our understanding of postindustrial landscape is continually challenged by artists.

the land art aesthetic

chapter three: appreciation

chapter three: appreciation

The development of contemporary environmental aesthetics involves not only

chapter three: appreciation

Richard Serra’s use of mass-produced industrial materials in his works, deprived

chapter three: appreciation

Transformation of the postindustrial site refers to dramatically changing the form

chapter three: appreciation

Artist: Robert Smithson Artist Biography:

Ill. 32 | (previous page): Storm King Wavefield, Maya Lin,