Described as the largest contemporary artwork in the world, ‘City’ is a colossal complex of mounds, ravines, and sculptures made of sand, rock, and a smattering of concrete.
The past few weeks have seen the unveiling of two desert cities: The first is a megalomaniac, mirrored glass metropolis that will likely never get built; the second is an earthen masterpiece that isn’t really a city.
City can only be traversed on foot, with none of the paraphernalia that typically populates complexes of this magnitude, namely walkways, lookouts, or even directional signs. It cost $40 million to build, and when it opens on September 2, it will accept only six visitors per day.
But City carries different proportions. At 1.5 miles long and a half-mile wide, it’s been described as the largest contemporary artwork in the world, reminiscent of Native American mound sites or Egyptian temples. It may not be a city in the strict sense—but it could well serve as the foundation for one.
“My good friend Richard Serra is building out of military-grade steel,” Heizer said in a 2016 New Yorkerprofile about his project. “Incans, Olmecs, Aztecs—their finest works of art were all pillaged, razed, broken apart, and their gold was melted down. When they come out here to fuck my City sculpture up, they’ll realize it takes more energy to wreck it than it’s worth.”
Recognize your brand’s excellence by applying to this year’s Brands That Matter Awards before the early-rate deadline, May 3.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elissaveta is a design writer based in Brooklyn. Her writing has appeared in The Atlantic, Wired, CityLab, Conde Nast Traveler, and many othersMore
