E-REA (Dec 2019)
« Using the land without possessing it » ? Le territoire de Richard Long
Abstract
The artist Richard Long has generally enjoyed a positive critical response. His work has been described as subtle and poetical. Although aesthetically powerful, its environmental impact is minimal. Long defines his own work as “politically correct.” Yet in the 1980s, some rare controversial voices were raised to offer a different interpretation, considering Long’s practice as a reflection of British imperialist culture. Starting from this controversy, this paper will reassess Long’s outdoor plastic works in the light of his writings and interviews. In Long’s statements, repeated allusions to issues of ownership and control of the land reveal that natural space, devoid of any human presence, is often thought of as terra nullius. The artist’s unqualified attachment to British identity also contradicts his image as a citizen of the world relayed by the press. His once ground-breaking stance and aesthetic language have changed very little in fifty years and do not match with contemporary ecocritical approaches and new readings on the hybridization of culture. Nevertheless, if we ignore Long’s words, his glocal practice echoes environmental and societal concerns enhanced by globalization. This ambiguity could explain his continued success.
