Land art and its political ecologies: Charles Jencks’s 'Fife Earth Project' (2009–13) – a case study

Once billed to be the largest artwork in Scotland, the remains of Charles Jencks’ Fife Earth Project can be found on a rural hillside by the M90. Initially commissioned by Scottish Coal in 2009 to fulfil governmental land restoration requirements, this monumental project aimed to transform a 930-acre coal mine into a major tourist destination which would celebrate the nation’s landscape and international influence. However, after the company went bankrupt in 2013, the initiative was put indefinitely on hold, leaving incomplete sculptures amidst traces of the artist’s colossal landscaping plans. Subsequently, this fragmentary condition has been worsened by the work’s interaction with its local ecology, as overgrowing vegetation, returning wildlife, and weather damage have further obscured its intended state. Moreover, its very nature as a reclamation initiative now feels outdated in the face of growing awareness of corporate greenwashing. In his book Second Site, James Nisbet argues that the site-specificity of land artworks should be reconceptualised in ecological terms which recognise the changing nature of the relatively unmanaged locations in which they are typically situated.

By reflecting on experiencing the Fife Earth Project today, as well as its history and potential futures, in this paper Christie will suggest that Nisbet’s framework should be expanded by attending to what could be understood as the political ecologies of land artworks – that is, their ongoing transmutations as a result of social, political, economic, as well as environmental factors.