Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2021, History of Art

In 1970, artist Robert Smithson created Partially Buried Woodshed on the campus of Kent State University, covering an abandoned woodshed with soil until its central beam cracked. Unsettling traditional notions of landscape and environmental art, Smithson's project also addressed a connection to Ohio's indigenous earthworks, many of which were destroyed—or willfully overlooked—by white settlers during the Frontier Era. In the decades since, artists have continued to approach Ohio's landscape as a site and a subject, challenging the conventional representations of the state's history and cultural legacy. Gathering works from a diverse group of artists, the exhibition Partially Buried: Land-Based Art in Ohio, 1970 to Now grapples with the state's history as a former frontier territory, confronting unanswered questions around land use, interpretation, preservation, and representation.

Committee: Kristina Paulsen (Advisor); Daniel Marcus (Committee Member); Lisa Florman (Committee Member) Subjects: Art History; Museum Studies; Museums