Earth is the middle part of the 五行 or the five phases. As the middle of the wuxing, earth is neutral. It’s not yin or yang. It holds onto things. That’s why earth can store any of the other phases inside of itself. Earth also isn’t associated with any particular season because it shows up between seasons.

This is the third article in a series where we will look at some modern and contemporary artists through the lens of Chinese astrology. We’re going to only look at sculptors because materiality is too limited when it comes to painting. Sculptors can use whatever mediums they want. We’re also limited by publicly available birth info. Not all artists have their birth info public so we can only work with artists whose birthdays are known. When we look at these artists, we’re going to take special notice of the day stem because that is the part of the chart that represents the person themselves.

Earth lays down flat. It’s the ground that you walk on. It’s relaxed. It doesn’t reach down or up. It just sticks around where it is. Earth can make other things stick together or bring things closer. Earth can be full of moisture or become dry and it will still remain earth. In fact, earth is quite self evident. It just is what it is. You get what you see. Because it holds other things, earth is a container.

Guess who I found for this article on earth day stem artists? I was able to find two artists who have rooted earth day pillars. This is a very strong expression of earth, one a strong expression of yang earth and the other a strong expression of yin fire. You’re not going to believe this. If you’re guessing, then simplify your mind and don’t overthink. You already know who these earthly sculptors are.

Yang earth is also called garrison earth. It’s earth that is bigger than you which can shield you like a big wall. If you hide behind yang earth, it’s like hiding behind a mountain. People won’t be able to see you. That’s why yang earth has two sides. It has a sunny side and a shady side. Here’s what yang earth looks like:



Does this look or sound familiar to you? This is Richard Serra’s chart.



Here’s a photo of one of his works. I can’t remember the title of this one but it doesn’t really matter because all of his sculptures are pretty much the same. They’re all big pieces of brown steel erected like a mountain. Garrison earth.



I think that fans of Richard Serra would say that his works are almost terrestrial. They give you a feeling of the sublime because they are so big. They are extremely macho. Richard Serrea is an earth dog. He is a mountain or a dog scaling a mountain.

What about yin earth? Yin earth is also called folded earth. This is soil. You can bury all kinds of things inside of soil. You can bury your treasures in it and it won’t disturb the earth too much. It’ll just swallow it up. Yin earth is like a sponge and can hold water and seeds. That’s why the character for yin earth is a womb.

Here’s a photo of yin earth:



Can you guess who is a yin earth rooted day pillar? Which sculptor is often compared to Richard Serra except that she is female and a lesbian? Whose sculptures are considered to be a soft butch version of macho formalism?

That’s right. If you didn’t think too hard then you probably got it. Here is Roni Horn’s chart.



Horn is an earth cow. Folded earth is a womb but the character for cow earthly branch is also a womb. Here’s one of Horn’s pieces. Again, Horn works serially so a lot of her works from one era will look very similar to other works from the same era. That’s why I’ll just show a photo of one.



I don’t know what to say. It’s literally a representation of a container. The container appears to hold water but that’s just the materials creating an illusion. Yin earth is folded earth which absorbs and holds water like a womb.

When I was researching for this article, I asked my partner to guess which artists have strong earth in their bazi charts. Right off the bat, they guessed one person: Richard Serra. Then, they guessed Louise Bourgeois, Eva Hesse, and Roni Horn for yin earth.

It just so happens that Louise Bourgeois, Eva Hesse, and Roni Horn are all yin earth day stem people. Bourgeois and Hesse both use wax to mimic the look of soil. Some of Hesse’s pieces literally lay down flat on the floor and fold on top of itself. Neither Bourgeois nor Hesse have rooted pillars which is why I picked Horn for this article but a comparison of a Richard Serra and an Eva Hesse, in my opinion, would get my same point across.

Earth conceals. You can literally play hide and seek inside of a Richard Serra. They hide you. Horn’s sculptures are obfuscated from the side and you have to come up close to peer deep inside. Their insides are partially hidden from you. This is an intimate gaze. You look inside of a Roni Horn. You go inside of a Richard Serra. When you interact with a Richard Serra in real life, it really does feel like a womb. Being inside of one makes you feel like you have walked inside of the earth-womb. That’s the feeling of being surrounded by garrison earth.