The Great Salt Lake is home to an extraordinary work of art known as the “Spiral Jetty.” The mere presence of this sculpture does not make the lake a museum, however. According to thefreedictionary.com, a museum is a “building, place, or institution devoted to the acquisition, conservation, study, exhibition, and educational interpretation of objects having scientific, historical, or artistic value,” and the Salt Lake simply does not meet these criteria.
One of the most critical deficiencies is that the Salt Lake is not home to a collection, only a single piece of art. A museum, be it public or private, outdoors or indoors, needs to be a collection of related artifacts. “Spiral Jetty” is only a single isolated work of art. If the “Spiral Jetty”'s presence made the Great Salt Lake a museum, then it should follow that any single piece of artwork displayed publicly or privately should inherently make its place of display a museum, but this is simply not the case.
Another critical reason why the Salt Lake is not a museum is because the “Spiral Jetty” is not actively preserved (at the behest of the artist, no less). The New York Times article does discuss the documentation of “Spiral Jetty” via cameras attached to weather balloons as well as public opposition to nearby drilling that may harm the art as well as the area's ecology. Neither of these things constitute proactive preservation, however. Moreover, it can be inferred that the artist himself, Robert Smithson, intended for his art to deteriorate over time. He is quoted in the article as writing that "Nature does not proceed in a straight line. It is rather a sprawling development. Nature is never finished." If one reads between the lines, Smithson seems to be saying that he wants his art to change, and even deteriorate completely, as a result of the passage of time.
This is not to say that the Salt Lake could never be a museum. Were it home to a larger collection of art that were actively curated, conserved, and displayed then I would certainly argue that it would meet the criteria defining a museum. Because it does not, however, it is simply the location of a piece of public art.
I have to disagree with you and say that the presence of the Spiral Jetty makes the Great Salt Lake a museum. No matter how different this museum is than the ones in cities or on the WSU campus, the Spiral Jetty was created on purpose and has been given cultural significance. Therefore, the Great Salt Lake is a museum because it houses this piece of art. Even though the Spiral Jetty is not preserved, the reason for this is because the artist wanted it to slowly join the elements. It is being monitored over time and people come to the Great Salt Lake to view the piece of art, showing that it has cultural significance.
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