Robert Smithson: The Collected Writings

A refreshing collection of writings and images by or with the Earth artist who managed the construction of Spiral Jetty - a monumental Earth work that coincided with the first Earth Day. His printed matter reveal a dark and iconoclastic mind, a counter counter culturalist always ready to slay the sacred dragons of the day - he is not warm and fuzzy, but biting and visionary. In his use of heavy construction equipment he manages to outdo David Smith as the ultimate Macho from New Jersey. But instead of appearing in overalls he wears nerdy glasses. He reflects the skeptical brilliance of the late 1960s that is still not ready for prime time. In a YouTube video, he says we are not better than the dinosaurs, just different - he was clearly irritated by the Museum of Natural History overlooking Central Park. Instead he reveres Olmsted the architect of that park as the first Earth artist.I was inspired to read this by an account of Smithson in the book “Alan Kaprow, Robert Smithson and the Limits of Art.” Check our clips of Smithson’s movies on YouTube - one shot from a helicopter. If you didn’t understand Kubrik’s 2001 (1968) you won’t understand this form of “thinking” either - but that’s not even the point. He sees the mind as being as dumb and deep as slags of rock and strada - another entropic form that the Earth one day spit up.

The book is in great condition and it is a great book.There was something strange about the first page in the book, though not exactly easy to describe. The first page was glued both just a little at the seam of the binding onto the inside of the paperback cover and the next page in the book. When I went to push that first page where it had been glued at the binding off the cover it somewhat disattached the book from the binding because the reason that page had been glued just a little to the back of the cover was because it was holding the pages of the book to the cover. That first page was not important to me anyway, and I removed it, and glued the whole next page onto the inside back of the paperback cover to hold the book to the cover to secure the binding, and it holds nicely. I had to do some work, though. The book is worth it.

This book is an essential source for one of the leading figures of contemporary art practice in the second half of the twentieth century. In a different way, it is a compilation of writings that prove a successful interest and experimental approach towards the implications of artist's writings: a challenging focus on art-writing and writing as art: a blurring of categories of many sorts.It is important to say that Smithson's qualities as a writer are comparable to his qualities as an artist. It is one of the most important books I own, and it is definitively an excellently compiled source for anyone (...even if barely) interested in the work of Robert Smithson.

Excellent book. However the description does not reflect the condition of this used book. It is “acceptable “ at best.Dog eared and heavily used.Certainly not “good” or even close...

Haven't read it yet but it isn't a book about his art as I had thought but more than than

It's always interesting to read what colleagues have to say about their work.

The interviews are what stand out more than anything. The conversation between Smithson and Kaprow is really worth checking out. Anyone who will be having a show of their own should at the very least flip through this book. Also sheds some light into Smithson's early work (some text based things and a few paintings and so forth). Who would have thought that it would be a fun read too?This is the kind of collection you can return to again and again.

This is a very original highly creative mind at work and the writing, though dense is both fascinating and stimulating

Great book which I hope to have for many years ahead.

Super. Everything.

Excellent. Beautiful. Exacly what i needed.