Shrimp Farm, Survival Piece

Who articulated the distinction between "[using] earth as material" and "[dealing] with ecology in the full sense of the term"?

Newton Harrison

What is the title of the selected work by Helen and Newton Harrison?

Shrimp Farm, Survival Piece #2

What is an example of a "Survival" work by the Harrisons?

Shrimp Farm

In what year was Helen and Newton Harrison's work, Shrimp Farm, Survival Piece #2, created?

1971

When was Helen and Newton Harrison made?

1971

What were Helen and Newton Harrison?

Art collaborators

Where were Helen and Newton Harrison born?

Queens, New York

What did Helen and Newton Harrison study before pursuing a teaching career?

English and education

In what decade did Helen and Newton Harrison pursue a teaching career?

1940s

Where did Newton Harrison study art?

The Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts

In what year were Helen and Newton Harrison married?

1953

Where did Helen and Newton Harrison live abroad from 1957 to 1960?

Florence, Italy

During what period of their marriage did Newton Harrison work as a solo artist?

The first two decades

When did Helen and Newton Harrison begin working together on a collaborative art practice?

Late 1960s

How long did the Harrisons' collaborative art practice last?

Throughout the remainder of their careers

What role did the Harrisons play in establishing contemporary eco art?

Vital in establishing the activist engagement and informed interdisciplinarity

What did works by Helen and Newton Harrison help establish in contemporary eco art?

Activist engagement and informed interdisciplinarity

How are Helen and Newton Harrison described in the context of eco art?

True pioneers

What kind of impact did the Harrisons' works have from the outset of their collaboration?

A tangible impact on the environment

What is an early example of Helen and Newton Harrison's collaborative work?

Making Earth

In what year did Helen and Newton Harrison first perform "Making Earth"?

1970

What does the work "Making Earth" consist of?

The production of rich soil

According to Helen and Newton Harrison, what understanding motivated them to create "Making Earth"?

That topsoil was endangered world-wide

Name the five types of elements used in the Harrisons' first "Making Earth" creation.

Sand, Clay, Sewage sludge, Leaf material, and Chicken, cow, and horse manure

Describe the process used by the Harrisons to create "Making Earth" from its elements.

Elements were gathered, mixed, watered, and mixed again and again over a 4-month period.

Over what period of time were the elements for "Making Earth" mixed?

4-month period

What were the characteristics of the soil produced by the Harrisons' "Making Earth" process?

It had a rich, forest-floor smell and could be tasted.

How did Helen and Newton Harrison introduce their art practice to larger audiences?

With a series of works titled the "Survival Pieces"

During what period were the Harrisons' "Survival Pieces" produced for museums?

1970 to 1972

What did the Harrisons fashion for each of their "Survival Pieces"?

A living ecosystem for a predetermined period of time

At what exhibition was "Shrimp Farm, Survival Piece #2" staged?

Art and Technology

Where was the "Art and Technology" exhibition held?

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)

When did the "Art and Technology" exhibition at LACMA run?

May 10 to August 29, 1971

What did the "Art and Technology" exhibition culminate?

A notoriously expensive and generally unsuccessful program (1967-1971) to pair artists with corporate R&D departments

What was the purpose of the 1967-1971 program that culminated in the "Art and Technology" exhibition?

To pair artists with the research and development departments of corporations in order to create collaborative work

How was the Harrisons' contribution to LACMA's "Art and Technology" show created?

Without corporate expertise

What is "Shrimp Farm, Survival Piece #2" identified as by many scholars?

The single work that marks the point of transition from Land art to more ecologically conscientious practices

What type of art is Robert Smithson best known for?

Land art

What is another name for the work "Shrimp Farm, Survival Piece #2"?

Notations of the Ecosystem of the Western Salt Works with the Inclusion of Brine Shrimp

What did Newton Harrison propose to introduce at Spiral Jetty?

Brine shrimp

What did "Shrimp Farm, Survival Piece #2" consist of?

Four ponds of salt water and brine shrimp

How many ponds were used in "Shrimp Farm, Survival Piece #2"?

Four

Where was "Shrimp Farm, Survival Piece #2" located?

Outdoors on LACMA's campus

How did earlier Earthworks of the Land art movement tend to operate, in contrast to the Harrisons' work?

They expended large outlays of energy in carving up the landscape and introduced industrially produced materials into environments.

According to Newton Harrison, what distinction did the Harrisons and many artists after them claim?

Between "[using] earth as material" and "[dealing] with ecology in the full sense of the term"

What work was the Harrisons' "Shrimp Farm" conceived as a direct response to?

Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty

What was Robert Smithson's apparent reaction to Newton Harrison's proposal for Spiral Jetty?

It held little interest for him.

Which artist is best known for his Land art?

Robert Smithson

What is Robert Smithson's most notable work of Land art mentioned in the text?

Spiral Jetty

What was the Harrisons' work Shrimp Farm conceived as a direct response to?

Spiral Jetty

Where is Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty located?

Utah's Great Salt Lake

Where is Robert Smithson's work Spiral Jetty located?

Great Salt Lake in Utah

What phenomenon did Newton Harrison and Robert Smithson discuss regarding the water around Spiral Jetty?

Its tendency to periodically adopt a reddish hue

What causes the reddish hue in the water around Spiral Jetty?

Carotene produced by algae in the Great Salt Lake

How does the salt level in the water affect the red hue produced by algae around Spiral Jetty?

The higher the salt level, the greater the red hue.

What would the brine shrimp do in Newton Harrison's proposal for Spiral Jetty?

Feed upon the algae and could be harvested at the site.

What did Newton and Helen Harrison decide to do after Robert Smithson showed little interest in their proposal for Spiral Jetty?

Make their own shrimp farm in Los Angeles

How did the Harrisons' "Shrimp Farm" create an effect of subtle shifts in color from one pond to the next?

By employing different levels of salt in each of the four ponds

What was a practical outcome of the "Shrimp Farm" exhibition?

An actual harvest of shrimp from the ponds at the end of the exhibition

Name five types of organisms for which the Harrisons sought to create living ecosystems in their "Survival" series.

Fish, trees potatoes, salad greens, and worms

What do the Harrisons' "Survival" works highlight by creating highly specific and localized living conditions?

The interrelations among organisms and the climate conditions required to sustain life in simplified, enclosed environments or "systems"

What idea about ecosystems did the Harrisons' practice later demonstrate to be a fallacy?

The idea of any ecosystem being truly closed

On what did the fallacy of "truly closed" ecosystems rely, in the context of the "Survival" pieces?

The short-term constraints of the "Survival" pieces

For what duration were the Harrisons' "Survival" pieces created?

Two- or three-month periods of time

What multifaceted work marked a significant change in the Harrisons' approach?

The Lagoon Cycle

What was the new title of the Harrisons' expanded experimentation with estuarial environments?

The Lagoon Cycle

During what period did "The Lagoon Cycle" occupy Helen and Newton Harrison?

1972 to 1984

How did "The Lagoon Cycle" project begin?

As another "Survival" piece, using a crab species native to Sri Lanka and an indoor, simulated estuary

Where are the mud crabs native to?

Sri Lanka

How did "The Lagoon Cycle" gradually transform?

Into a much larger and more ambitious meditation on the scale and integration of ecosystems across the entire Pacific Rim

What crab species did the Harrisons originally plan to cultivate in "The Lagoon Cycle"?

Scylla serrata, or mud crab

In what environment did the Harrisons originally plan to cultivate the mud crab for "The Lagoon Cycle"?

A closed laboratory environment

Name two goals of "The Lagoon Cycle" that were similar to previous "Survival" works.

To produce an edible food source in controlled, replicable conditions and To study the behavior of the resulting ecosystem

How did the ecosystem of "The Lagoon Cycle" differ from previous "Survival" works regarding its duration?

It would not be limited to a predetermined period of time.

What three conditions were used to mimic a tropical, estuarial lagoon in the mud crabs' tanks?

Timed lights, Limited temperature fluctuation, and Controlled salinity

Where were the mud crabs' tanks set up?

The Harrisons' Southern California studio

What type of environment were the mud crabs' tanks designed to mimic?

A tropical, estuarial lagoon

When did the Harrisons notice an unexpected change in the crabs' behavior?

Late in 1972

What natural event would have arrived in Sri Lanka at the same time the Harrisons noticed a change in the crabs' behavior?

Monsoon season

How did the Harrisons attempt to simulate monsoon conditions for the mud crabs?

By decreasing salinity and increasing available food

What was significant about the mud crabs' mating behavior in the Harrisons' studio?

It was the first known instance for this species in an artificial environment

What behavior did simulating monsoon conditions trigger in the mud crabs?

Mating behavior

What discovery did the Harrisons make about the mud crabs' survival?

They required periodic changes in the steady-state of their ecosystem

What did the Harrisons do in response to their discovery about the crabs' ecosystem needs?

They moved out of the laboratory

What were the artists forced to reconsider after their discovery about the crabs' survival?

The type of enclosed, artificial ecosystems they had simulated to date

What three new ways of presenting their work did the Harrisons introduce with The Lagoon Cycle?

Narrative voices, Performance, and Printed matter

How many "cycles" did The Lagoon Cycle expand through?

Seven

What three elements do the panels of The Lagoon Cycle incorporate?

Text, maps, and Cut photo-collage

How is The Lagoon Cycle exhibited?

As a series of seven large panels

What are the two characters in the dialogue of The Lagoon Cycle?

A Lagoonmaker, A Witness

What does the text on The Lagoon Cycle panels track?

The Harrisons' engagement with estuarial lagoons for mud crabs

Through what narrative device is the text on The Lagoon Cycle panels told?

An oblique dialogue between two characters

What do the first three panels of The Lagoon Cycle examine?

The move from indoor tanks to outdoor environments

What does the fourth panel of The Lagoon Cycle describe?

Moving the crabs to a series of ponds cultivated in California's Salton Sea

What do the fifth and sixth panels of The Lagoon Cycle introduce and reflect upon?

A bold proposal to regulate salinity, herbicide, and pesticide levels in the Salton Sea

How does the proposal in the fifth and sixth panels suggest regulating levels in the Salton Sea?

By connecting it to the Gulf of California and the Pacific Ocean

What does the seventh panel of The Lagoon Cycle provide a meditation upon?

The Pacific Ring of Fire

What does the Pacific Ring of Fire connect, as mentioned in the text?

Sri Lanka to the American West Coast

What were the Harrisons' "Survival" works, such as Shrimp Farm, conceived as?

A means of investigating ecological issues and prescribing solutions

What was The Lagoon Cycle conceived as by the Harrisons?

A means of investigating ecological issues and prescribing solutions