Richard Long

T03027 SLATE CIRCLE 1979

Not inscribed
Slate, 214 pieces, diameter 260 (660 approx)
Presented by Anthony d'Offay 1980
Exh: Richard Long, Museum of Modern Art, Oxford, November–December 1979 (no catalogue)

The Slate Circle is made by laying 214 stones in a haphazard pattern within a circle drawn on the ground in pencil with a diameter of 6.60 metres. None of the stones touch, and they are chosen at random except that there should be a fairly even distribution of sizes and lengths. The Gallery has the certificate of ownership which accompanies the work, giving directions for laying the slate.

Long chose the slate for this piece from a quarry in mid-Wales that he had passed whilst completing part of a piece entitled ‘Four Walks: Winter 1977’, the specific walk being ‘From the source of the River Severn to the summit of Snowdon, 60 miles’. (This is the only connection between the sculpture and the walk).

A similar work using 168 slate pieces from the same quarry was shown in Un Certain Art Anglais at ARC, Paris, and the Van Abbemuseum, Eindhoven in 1979.

Published in:
The Tate Gallery 1978-80: Illustrated Catalogue of Acquisitions, London 1981