Walter De Maria, Instrument for La Monte Young, 1966
Smart Museum of Art
My name is Leo Mehring-Keller and you’re about to listen to sounds made by this artwork.
[Sounds of ball rolling and knocking]
If you look closely at Walter de Maria’s “Instrument for La Monte Young,” you can see the thinly etched line inside designates where the ball should travel and guides it to prevent sporadic motion. Notice how the direction the ball is meant to travel back and forth is similar to that of the bow of a string instrument. And just as a bow must eventually reverse direction, so must the ball. Since the ball can move continuously, the sound stays alive instead of slowly fading away. The visual experience then reflects this continuity with its sleek metallic smoothness. On the other hand, visually contrasting are the shapes of the container in the ball, suggestive of the static, inanimate nature of the surface as opposed to the fluidity of the ball. This continuous contact between the two different surfaces resembles many La Monte Young works, for example “Number 7” of his “Compositions 1960” made up in the same way of only the constant sound of two different pitches, a B natural and an F sharp together forming a perfect fifth.
[Sounds of ball rolling and knocking]
Walter De Maria, <em>Instrument for La Monte Young</em>, 1965–66, Solid aluminum, three contact microphones; Eurorack MX 602A amplifier equalizer. Thordis Moeller. © Estate of Walter De Maria. Photo by Tyler Mallory.
Walter De Maria, Instrument for La Monte Young, 1965–66, Solid aluminum, three contact microphones; Eurorack MX 602A amplifier equalizer. Thordis Moeller. © Estate of Walter De Maria. Photo by Tyler Mallory.
Long Image Description
Long descriptions are text versions of the information provided in a detailed or complex image, like the image above.This sculpture is of simple form. It combines two geometric shapes: an incomplete rectangular prism, missing one face, and a sphere. The work has no base; it rests directly on the platform. The two components – the ball and the channel it rests in – are made of aluminum, giving the sculpture a uniformly reflective, shining silver color. The channel has a length that is seven times its width. Both ends are closed, although the top remains open. Along the bottom edge of the sculpture’s long side, the following information is inscribed: INSTRUMENT FOR LA MONTE YOUNG NUMBER 6 OF 9 COPYRIGHT © WALTER DE MARIA & LA MONTE YOUNG 1966. An electrical outlet cable is attached to one of the sculpture’s short sides which powers the instrument’s microphones and amplifier.