Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) made news in March when a 340-ton granite rock traveled from the Jurupa Valley to finally settle in L.A. to begin its artistic construction. Artist Michael Heizer initially conceived the artwork in 1968, but only stumbled upon the chosen boulder six years ago at a granite quarry in Riverside County, California. Composed of a 456-foot long slot across LACMA’s campus, “Levitated Mass” promises to be an innovative addition to LACMA’s treasure trove of unique exhibits.
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In March, onlookers along the transport route greeted the hefty boulder by cheering from sidewalks as a giant truck carried it for 11 days across California to its final destination in Los Angeles. The megalith’s arrival at LACMA drew expansive crowds that blocked off busy Wilshire and La Brea Boulevards. Heizer’s other works of art also highlight unrestrained forms of negative space and absence of landscape, as seen in 1969’s “Double Negative.”
“Levitated Mass” encompasses art through the ages; as evidenced by ancient sculptures utilizing huge megaliths, to utilizing abstract geometry and modern forms of engineering and technical construction. Contemporary art enthusiasts walk through a low trench underneath the massive rock, while it hovers above them in the air. Experience an “Only in Los Angeles” moment by visiting LACMA and taking in the epic proportions of Michael Heizer’s newest masterpiece, “Levitated Mass.”
