“Harsh Weather and Economics Imperil Land Art”, an article by Julia Halperin in the January 23, 2024 issue of The New York Times, notes that the Des Moines Art Center will be dismantling Mary Miss’ “Greenwood Pond: Double Site”, a work of land art in its collection because it no longer has the resources to maintain the work and claims that it would cost $2.7 million to repair it by replacing materials which had been damaged by an increasingly harsh climate. In its contract with Miss, the museum pledged to "reasonably protect and maintain the project against the ravages of time, vandalism, and the elements”. Such wording raises many questions including :What is reasonable action? and Can an outdoor sculpture really be protected from the actions of time and the elements?
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