In Radio Cyclops (1964), a wide-open eye occupies the center, linked via a circuit to a hot pink band of color. When looking at the sculpture, one sees one’s own eyes looking back, reflected and refracted in the mirrored surfaces. Made at a time when Smithson was experimenting with plastics and developing sculptural ideas from his collages, this wall-based sculpture incorporates Plexiglass, polished blue steel, and mirrors on a wooden support.

Robert Smithson was interested in belief systems, in religion, and in popular culture. In his pre-1964 works he made many works that create conversations and contradictions by combining references from various histories. The zodiac drawings depict Smithson’s interpretation of each of the twelve signs in the astrological calendar. On the verso of each drawing are handwritten annotations, that contain biblical references and quotations from the Book of Genesis.