Andy Goldsworthy is a British sculptor, photographer and environmentalist living in Scotland who produces site-specific sculpture and land art situated in natural and urban settings. His art involves the use of natural and found objects, to create both temporary and permanent sculptures which draw out the character of their environment.



He takes a bunch of something natural - rocks, flowers, leaves - and creates a design.

Some of his creations are temporary because they are built on flowing water.





So part of the art is watching it unravel down the stream.

He also uses ice.



His permanent art tends to be stacked stones in shapes that defy gravity because they are put together without mortar, just stacked strategically.



Through careful selection of naturally colored materials he is able to achieve what looks like a painting, with an optical illusion of depth.



This is just leaves carefully chosen and arranged, but it looks like more than that.



There is a DVD about his work "Andy Goldsworthy Working With Time" where we can see him going about it.

It requires tremendous patience to gather just the right colors and shapes and then assemble them with meticulous care. There are many false starts and setbacks, but finally there it is, transitory or more lasting, part of the environment around it. Watching the process, I am struck by this opportunity to see the physical manifestations of the artist's perception of his environment.