More than half a century after he began it, American artist Michael Heizer is finally opening his pharaonic "sculpture-city" in the heart of the Nevada desert to the public.
This UFO seems to emerge from another world, with its abstract forms composed of sand, compacted earth, rock and concrete. It's the legendary City (1970-2022) by land art pioneer Michael Heizer. This sculptural marvel finally comes to life in the west-central part of Basin and Range National Monument, in the heart of the Nevada desert. Its design brings ancient cities back to life, in the image of Native American, pre-Columbian or Egyptian ceremonial sites, while suggesting the forms of a futuristic megalopolis. A "human experience of time and space, evocative of the immemorial cultures that inspired it", as stated by the Triple Aught Foundation, the non-profit organization in charge of managing its construction, supervision and maintenance. A monumental work of art, City measures 2.4 km by 1.6 km, reaches a height of 24 m and took 52 years to build, at a cost of $40 million. This substantial sum, spread over five decades, enabled access to colossal industrial resources - at the outset, the 77-year-old artist had self-financed the project, before a coalition of institutions and investors came on board.
Unparalleled beauty
With its post-apocalyptic airs, City encompasses three elements: "Complex One", created between 1972 and 1976, inspired by the Djoser step pyramid built by Imhotep in Egypt; "Complex Two", which followed in the 1980s, still referring to ancient cultures; and finally the geometric extractions "45°, 90°, 180°", made of triangles and rectangles. Michael Heizer, the son of an archaeologist, continues to inscribe the memory of American civilization in the landscape, with power and endurance. He retains his ability to work with immense variations in scale, perspective and point of view, producing earthwork sculptures that exist both outside and inside museums and galleries. Like the most emblematic, Double Negative (1969), which involved digging a trench in Nevada's Moapa Valley. From this dream come true, he finally opens his sanctuary to the public, completing one of the century's most important contemporary works that masterfully fuses art, architecture and landscape.
City (1970-2022)
Site open since September 2, 2022
Limited visits for the first year of opening
By reservation only: info@tripleaughtfoundation.org
Rates: $150 per person
Nathalie Dassa
