The New York Earth Room: Your Actual Breath of Fresh Air

Arts and EntertainmentThe New York Earth Room: Your Actual Breath of Fresh AirThe New York City Earth Room is a breath of fresh air (literally and figuratively).Reading Time: 3 minutesBy Chloe TsengIssue 4, Volume 117 || 2026-2027By Chloe Tseng “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”—Henry David Thoreau, WaldenToday, locals and tourists alike swarm the streets and sidewalks of SoHo, one of New York City’s go-to destinations known for its industrial cast-iron buildings, luxury and boutique shopping, and commercial art galleries and installations. Hidden in the heart of all the hustle is an unusual sculpture: a white room full of dirt.American artist and sculptor Walter De Maria (1935-2013) created three Earth Rooms over the course of his lifetime.

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