29 Temporary Art

Rivers and Tides is a documentary written and directed by Thomas Riedelsheimer. Andy Goldsworthy creates ephemeral sculptures made from elements of nature. Goldsworthy, who from age 13 worked on farms as a laborer, has likened the repetitive quality of farm tasks to the routine of making sculpture: “A lot of my work is like picking potatoes; you have to get into the rhythm of it.” 1 hour 30 minutes.

A follow-up documentary, Leaning Into the Wind, was released in 2018. Goldsworthy’s works are held in the collections of the Courtauld Institute of Art in London, the Storm King Art Center in Mountainville, NY, and the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., among others.

Watch this excerpt from Rivers and Tides (32:17)
– read the transcript

Check out this cathedral that this man, DeWitt Boyd, built this from a pile of pebbles:

Visit the Icehotel in Sweden – and check out the art gallery

View one person’s experience at a “snowtel” in the Arctic (7:41) 

Visit the Queen of Snowglobes

Consider this:

1. How do you feel about artwork that is created with the knowledge in mind of its temporary nature? What, if anything, is to be gained by creating art that is swept away at the end of the day?
2. Choose an image from the Icehotel art gallery that you think is best represented in ice. Why did you choose that particular image?
3. Would you stay overnight at a “snowtel” like the Icehotel? Why or why not?
4. If you were designing a custom snowglobe for yourself, what three elements would you want inside to represent you and/or your life?