Dia Art Foundation, Soil Sessions Series: “Tactile Earth”

Location: Inwood Hill Park

Date: Spring 2024

Overview: 

“Tactile Earth invites participants to explore the northernmost tip of Manhattan, a natural area shaped by dramatic geologic shifts over millennia. In contrast to the surrounding landscape, which has been flattened and urbanized in the past few centuries, Inwood’s impermeable bedrock and steep inclines reveal what Manhattan might have looked like without human intervention. Akin to Delcy Morelos’s El abrazo (2023), on view at Dia Chelsea’s galleries from October 5, 2023—July 20, 2024, Inwood Hill Park provides an embrace of natural, geologic monuments distinct from the tall buildings and streets a short walk away.

After exploring the area and taking in the environment with all one’s senses, participants will collect frottage rubbings of rocks, trees, and other surfaces using soil-based art materials commonly found in Norton’s art practice. The unique textures captured will be cut out and incorporated in collages, creating artworks that represent a multisensory, tactile journey through the landscape.”