Andrew Rogers on Land Art, Sculpture, and the Rhythms of Life Project

In an interview with Artribune, Australian artist Andrew Rogers (born 1947 in Melbourne) discusses his thirty-year career bridging sculpture and Land Art. At Palazzo Mora in Venice during the 2017 Biennale, he installed the sculptural work "We Are," which reflects on individual diversity and shared heritage. His monumental project "Rhythms of Life" comprises 51 stone structures across all continents, visible from space and documented via high-resolution satellite imagery from sensors orbiting 440 to 770 kilometers above Earth. The project emphasizes globalization, cultural diversity, and humanity's interconnection. Rogers also created a permanent sculpture for Expo 2017 in Astana, Kazakhstan: "I Am-Energy," a 6.5-ton steel form designed to withstand extreme temperatures from 30°C to -20°C, supported by a single 30-centimeter-diameter stainless steel bar. He selects sites for Land Art based on historical and topographical significance, using only local stones from non-arable land without introducing external materials. Locations include Israel's Arava Desert (400 feet below sea level), Chile's Atacama Desert, Bolivia (14,300 feet elevation), Nepal's deepest gorge, and a frozen lake in Antarctica. Rogers views his sculpture and Land Art as philosophically linked, both addressing the relationship between individual and community, and serving as metaphors for humanity's interconnectedness across time and space.