The World Through a Circle is the second of two concrete poems that articulate Nancy Holt’s core ideas about perception. This signed work on paper consists of a pen-annotated photocopy that develops from an earlier, typewritten version of the poem. In the two early works, Holt distills some of her most influential concepts within the physical and conceptual limits of a circle.

Along each segment of a square made up of dashed lines, lies the command: “DETACH HERE.” The implied perforation beckons the viewer to tear along the sides and remove the square from the rest of the paper. This call to action renders the work somehow unfinished in its present state, yet a “completed” version—with the square detached—removes with it the essence of the work. One of Holt’s earliest works, Detach Here is a keen example of the artist’s continual desire to rouse the spectator, inviting conscious participation in the act of spectatorship.