Robert Smithson

Robert Smithson was born January 2, 1938.  Smithson’s first works were Pop Art-esque collages inspired by beefcake magazines.  After reevaluating his position and platform, Smithson reemerged as a minimalism enthusiast.  He began exploring industrial sites and installing “non-sites,” collected sediment mixed with mirror or glass, in galleries throughout New York.  Smithson remained fascinated by landscapes and their minute pieces, publishing an Artforum article in 1968 promoting the initial land artists.  The following year he began producing land-art pieces, to push-the-limits and explore concepts of the medium.  He died July 20, 1973 in a plane crash surveying sites for his work in Amarillo, Texas. Photographs of Smithson by Dan Graham are included in Tom Burr's guest edit.

robertsmithson.com

Robert Smithson is featured in Edition: Guest Editor, Tom BurrEdition: Paradise Found>

Bingham Copper Mining Pit - Utah Reclamation Project (1973)
Spiral Jetty (1970)
Dead Tree (1969)
Spiral Hill (1971)
Spiral Jetty (1970)
Spiral Jetty (1970)
Yucatan Mirror Displacements (1969)
Asphalt Rundown
Swamp