And what about an instrument of war and conquest and imperial ambition?

—John Ruskin, 1851
For one thing this century will in after ages be considered to have done in a superb manner and one thing I think only. . . it will always be said of us, with unabated reverence,’They built ships of the Line.’ Take it all in all, a ship of the Line is the most honorable thing that man as a gregarious animal has ever produced. By himself, unhelped, he can do better things than ships of the line; he can make poems and pictures, and other such concentrations of what is best in him. But as a being living in flocks, and hammering out, with alternate strokes and mutual agreement, what is necessary for him in those flocks to get or produce the ship of the line is his first work. Into that he has put as much of his human patience, common sense, forethought, experimental philosophy, self control, habits of order and obedience, thoroughly wrought handwork, defiance of brute elements, careless courage, careful patriotism, and calm expectation of the judgement of God, as can well be put into a space of 300 feet long by 80 broad. And I am thankful to have lived in an age when I could see this thing so done.

Cam Whore

Think about it. These projects do nothing but take up time, money, space, and resources in general, and it doesn’t even say ANYTHING. The Pyramids and the Parthenon had points – they were made to honor people or deities. They were beautifully made and painstakingly accurate in dimensions and detail. They were the subject of prose for generations to come, and let’s face it, if you’re going to make monuments of vanity (be it to yourself or your deities), then this is the way to do it.

I hadn’t heard of the “Thunder Stone”

I wonder how they anchored capstans and how they were constructed.

Literally. He apparently funds all his own work.

The film showed how Kristo and his wife “draped” a large section of coastline, miles of it, in fact.
He worked for months, getting the permits, permission from property owners, lobbying civic and government agencies, hiring contractors, and (most important) raising an enormous amount of money and volunteer workers to get the materials and equipment and do the actual installation.

After the coast was draped, with minimal environmental damage, and the plastic was up for some time, he cleaned up the mess and restored the land to its original condition. The whole episode was pulled off because he made it happen, and everyone got to see the finished product.

I realized he had successfully accomplished a complex task that required great skill, and produced, in me at least, intense admiration for his management and persuasive skills.
It was indeed art after all, even by my own definition.

I wonder if maybe the Pyramids or the Parthenon were built the same way…some artist just decided he wanted to make it happen.

Plus, y’know, it actually has a statue on it, qualifying as art.