Groundswell: Women of Land Art

Far from the indoor spaces of the gallery and museum, the 1960s pioneers of Land Art used natural materials to create outdoor works, often on a monumental scale. The public’s perception of the genre has largely been dominated by its male artists; here to change that is this exhibition at the Nasher Sculpture Center in Dallas (23 September–7 January 2024). Installations, sculpture, drawings and performances by 12 women artists will go on show throughout both indoor and outside spaces. These include new works created for the exhibition such as Stream Trace: Dallas Branch Crossing (2023) by Mary Miss, which follows the path of a stream buried in the Nasher’s grounds. Other highlights include several works by Nancy Holt, a version of whose work Pipeline (1986) has been constructed inside the gallery; her 1978 film Sun Tunnels will also be shown alongside related drawings and a model. Elsewhere, photographs of Spine of the Earth (1980) by Lita Albuquerque reveal vast geometric patterns produced using powdered pigment on the cracked ground of the Mojave Desert. Find out more on the Nasher Sculpture Park’s website.

Preview below | View Apollo’s Art Diary

Wheatfield – A Confrontation: Battery Park Landfill, Downtown Manhattan – Blue Sky, World Trade Center (1982), Agnes Denes. Courtesy Leslie Tonkonow Artworks + Projects; © Agnes Denes

Sun Tunnels (1973–76), Nancy Holt. Dia Art Foundation. © 2023 Holt/Smithson Foundation and Dia Art Foundation/Licensed by Artists Rights Society, New York

Spine of the Earth (1980), Lita Albuquerque. Courtesy the artist and Kohn Gallery, Los Angeles; © Lita Albuquerque