This lucky Art Girl accompanied a group of Sotheby's Art Business students to the middle of the Nevada desert (okay, near Overton, which is two hours outside of Las Vegas) in 100+ degree heat to experience Michael Heizer's earthwork,
Double Negative. Situated on a 60-acre site,
Double Negative consists of two trenches cut into Mormon Mesa. Approximately 244,000 tons of earth were displaced in the construction process. Each trench measures 50 feet high and 30 feet wide. The two trenches line up across the natural gap in the mesa's ridge, and the entire work (including the space between the trenches) measures 1,500 feet long. We were a bit apprehensive of the trek, as we did not have the requisite high-clearance, 4-wheel-drive vehicles. Luckily, our two regular SUVs made it up and across the rocky mesa.
Michael Heizer completed
Double Negative in 1969. Once Heizer selected the site for his monumental earthwork, Los Angeles dealer Virginia Dwan financed the purchase of the land. Dwan wanted to sell the earthwork, but Heizer objected, so in 1985 they reached a compromise: Dwan gifted the work to The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, to coincide with an exhibition of Heizer's work presented by the museum.
According to the artist's wishes, MOCA will undertake no conservation or restoration of
Double Negative, as Heizer wants nature to eventually reclaim the land via weather and erosion.
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| Looking north from the entrance to the south cut |
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| Students descend into the south trench |
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| Posing in the south trench |
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| Looking back toward the entrance of the south cut |
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| Students atop the north rim of the mesa point across to the south cut |
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| Watch your step! |
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| A student rests before climbing back out of the north cut |
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| One last photo of this adventurous group at the rim of the north cut |
So to sum up, two negatives really do equal a positive! I only wish my fellow Art Girls Linda and Sonja could have been there.
"There is nothing there, yet it is still a sculpture." - Michael Heizer
