Taking rammed earth as a part of clay practice is a grey area for some people, but we feel comfortable making the connection. Certainly Andy Goldsworthy, the British sculptor who is known for his site-specific land-art installations, has done a lot of work with unfired clay in the past. Recently, he’s been working on installations around San Francisco, including his Tree Fall piece in 2013.
He’s at work on a new installation for the Presidio Park in San Francisco, according to this article on SFGate. It’s tentatively titled Earth Wall. The article contains a video which we are not able to link here, but it’s suggested that you give it a look. Videos are a rare outing for the introverted Goldsworthy and in it he explains the process for the piece. He formed a ball out of branches he gathered over the last year, embedded them in the wall, then dug out the wall exposing the branches, giving them the appearance of having been there a long time.
Andy Goldsworthy with an installation in San Francisco, tentatively titled Earth Wall. Photograph by The Chronicle’s Sam Whiting.
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I love Goldsworthy’s artworks. They are so inventive both in concept and in the way he uses material to compose the installations. How permanent is that rammed wall?