Federal Court Bars Des Moines Art Center from Destroying Mary Miss Land Art Installation

A federal judge on May 3 issued apreliminary injunctionpreventing the Des Moines Art Center fromdismantlinga major Land art installation that it commissioned from artist Mary Miss decades ago. In regard to the contested work, Miss’s 1989–96 environmentGreenwood Pond: Double Site, Judge Stephen Locher of the US District Court for the Southern District of Iowa ruled that “the Art Center cannot demolish the artwork without Miss’s consent (which she will not grant) because the Art Center promised in a contract not to do so.” Locher noted, however, that Miss could not force the museum to restore the work, which it has said it cannot afford to do, saying, “The end result is therefore an unsatisfying status quo: the artwork will remain standing (for now) despite being in a condition that no one likes but that the court cannot order anyone to change.”

Made from treated wood, concrete, mesh, and metal,Greenwood Pond: Double Sitemeanders alongside the titular body of water in the Des Moines city park that is also home to the Art Center. The museum, which had contracted with Miss at the time of its 1994 commissioning to “reasonably protect and maintain the project against the ravages of time, vandalism, and the elements,” allowed it to fall into ruin following its completion. Facing what it estimated to be a $2.7 million repair bill and $8 million in future maintenance costs, and having entered into an agreement with city officials in 1990 to “correct any unsafe conditions within a work of art sited inside” the park in which Miss’s installation sits, the Art Center had planned to begin demolishing the work on April 8. Miss on April 4filed suitagainst the museum, contending that it was in violation of the 1990 Visual Artists Rights Act, which gives artists the right to “prevent any destruction of a work of recognized stature.” Locher on April 8 issued atemporary restraining orderhalting the planned demolition but in his recent ruling asserted that the installation “is not a ‘painting, drawing, print, or sculpture’ and therefore is not entitled to protection under VARA.”

Art Center spokesperson Amy Day in a statement described the situation as a “court-ordered stalemate” and said the museum was exploring its options. “In the meantime,” she said, “we will retain the existing fencing around the dangerous sections of the site and will engage the City of Des Moines to address public safety in Greenwood Park.” Speaking with the New York Times, Miss said, “I don’t know why the museum wouldn’t come to me at this point and try to work this out instead of spending more money on legal fees.”