The New York Earth Room

Walter De Maria was associated with the 1970s Land Art movement. The New York Earth Room is made up 250 cubic yards of earth spread 22 inches deep over 3600 square feet of floor space of an office building in lower Manhattan. The earth is 22 inches deep and it weighs 140 tons. Originally created in 1977, this work has been on view to the public since 1980. This is the third iteration of this work and the only one that still exists.
This work cannot be entered, but must be viewed from the other side of a glass divider that contains the dirt. This piece of glass divides the space into once intended for a human presence and another that is not. When looking at this work, the viewer gazes out at the great expanse of earth, from which they are slightly removed, in a way that in reminiscent of the sublime gaze in early American landscape paintings, such as those of the Hudson River School. Looking at the work, the viewer is awed by the power necessary to create this new type of modern landscape. This work, heavy with the smell of dirt and organic matter, is juxtaposed with the bustle and urbanized environment of Manhattan, directly outside of the earth room. By moving the landscape inside, De Maria challenges conception of interior and exterior spaces. This works show the ability of human power in modern times to disrupt, disturb, and displace the natural world.