As one of North America's more intriguing and unusual man-made monuments, land artist Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty constitutes an earthwork spiral that extends from one corner of Utah's Great Salt Lake. Created in 1970, it boasts dimensions of approximately 1,500 feet long and 15 feet wide. Intriguingly, the Jetty serves as a barometer for surrounding environmental shifts - from changes in the weather, to the shifting angle of the sun's rays as the day rolls forward, to the amount of salt and algae in the water - changes that can render the water purple, blue or gold. With his nonfiction film Casting a Glance, director and conceptual artist James Benning pays tribute to Smithson's creation by visiting and filming the Jetty repeatedly over a period of 1 1/2 years, from May 2005 through January 2007, and cinematographically documenting its shifting aesthetic appearance.
by Nathan Southern
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