Nancy Holt (1938-2014), a pioneering land artist known for her monumental work *Sun Tunnels* (1976) in the Utah desert, is the subject of a new exhibition at the Goodwood Art Foundation in Sussex. Titled *MOONSUNSTAR EARTHSKYWATER*, the show is the first UK retrospective to bring together Holt's photographic works, films, poetry, indoor installations, and outdoor pieces, including *Hydra's Head*, a constellation-inspired installation of six circular pools in a chalk quarry. The exhibition highlights Holt's recurring motifs of circles and systems, tracing them from her early concrete poem to her large-scale cosmological works.
The exhibition matters because it repositions Holt as a central figure in land art, a movement historically dominated by men like her husband Robert Smithson. By showcasing her interdisciplinary practice—spanning poetry, photography, and sculpture—the show underscores her unique focus on invisible systems (astronomical, ecological, and infrastructural) and her pragmatic, humanistic approach. It also draws attention to the Holt/Smithson Foundation, which manages both artists' legacies with a planned closure in 2038, prompting reflection on how to preserve and present land art for future generations.