Sun Tunnels

Nancy Holt's Sun Tunnels
Nancy Holt, Sun Tunnels (1973-76), Great Basin Desert, Utah, Concrete, steel, earth, Overall dimensions: 9 ft. 2-1/2 in. x 68 ft. 6in. x 53 ft. (2.8 x 20.9 x 16.2 m); length on the diagonal: 86 ft. (26.2 m), Photograph: Nancy Holt, Collection Dia Art Foundation with support from Holt/Smithson Foundation © Holt/Smithson Foundation and Dia Art Foundation / Licensed by Artists Rights Society, New York 

Holt's most recognized artwork, Sun Tunnels (1973–1976), is a large-scale installation in Utah's Great Basin Desert, a four-hour drive from the UMFA. It consists of four large concrete cylinders, arranged on the desert floor in a cross pattern, that align with the sunrise and sunset on the summer and winter solstices. In addition to this perfect solar framing, each of the cylinders is pierced with smaller holes representing the stars of four constellations: Draco, Perseus, Columba, and Capricorn. Holt's design allows for an ever-changing play of light and shadow upon the surfaces of her work. The four concrete tubes act as viewfinders framing precise images which, in Holt's words, "bring the vast space of the desert back to human scale." 

One of only a few women associated with Land art, Holt is a key yet under-recognized figure who has produced ambitious projects all over the world. Holt was also a pioneer of time-based media, and the camera was crucial to her exploration of space, sculptural form, and subjective perspective. Her work—photographs, films, site-specific installations, earthworks, public sculpture, and even personal flashlight and audio tours—transforms our perception of place, space, and time. Focusing our vision and challenging our understanding of an environment, Holt's work draws attention to the complexities of our relationship with the landscape we inhabit and act upon.

Sun Tunnels is a part of the Holt/Smithson Foundation, which furthers the legacies of Robert Smithson and Nancy Holt. UMFA partners with Holt/Smithson Foundation, Dia Art Foundation, and the Center for Land Use Interpretation to further advocate for Sun Tunnels. 

Plan your visit to Sun Tunnels

There’s no Wi-Fi in the desert! Download the UMFA Audio Guide in the Apple Store or in the Google Play Store to take Sun Tunnels Self-Guide with you on your adventure.

Photographic and video material of Sun Tunnels is copyright protected. For rights and reproduction requests, contact rights@diaart.org. For general inquiries related to Sun Tunnels, contact suntunnels@diaart.org.

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