Richard Long - Walking the Line

RICHARD LONG (1945-)

This new volume about and by the British sculptor and land artist Richard Long is centred mainly on his work from the last dozen years, though it also contains some earlier pieces. Long's ability to turn any given space, indoors or not, into a work of art is unrivalled, and this new journey takes the reader around the world: to the Sahara Desert and down the Rio Grande; from coast to coast in France and Spain; to Bolivia and Peru; and to the peaks of Honshu in Japan. Some of the sculptor's oeuvre is created during his walks through the world's landscapes, while other works bring the materials of nature - stones, boulders, branches, twigs and mud - into a more domestic or sheltered environment: museums, galleries, houses, gardens. These sculptures feed the senses whereas the artist's walks feed the imagination. Majestic museum sculptures made from tons of rock are juxtaposed with dramatic mud paintings and with photographs recording ephemeral changes to the natural landscape. Many of the photographs were taken by the artist himself, and he has also included his own notes and writings. If walking has become Long's trademark, the path is perhaps the central image or archetype in his work. To walk a line is the easiest thing a human being can do to put a mark on a place. The idea of the path or way has meaning in all cultures - from the most material to the most spiritual. It is both real and symbolic, whether it be the Christian's pilgrimage, the Taoist's Great Way, or the Zen Buddhist's Heavenly Way.