Light and Space

ライト・アンド・スペース / 1960s– / Style / Geometric Abstraction

The Southern California movement that takes light itself, spatial perception and the limits of vision as material. Turrell's openings to the sky and Irwin's scrims make the act of seeing the artwork.

Light and Space — Turrell, Skyspace Three Gems (CC BY-SA 4.0) · © Otheralex01 — Turrell, Skyspace Three Gems (CC BY-SA 4.0) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · © Otheralex01

Light and Space — Deer Shelter Skyspace (CC BY-SA 2.0) · © Robin Stott — Deer Shelter Skyspace (CC BY-SA 2.0) · CC BY-SA 2.0 · © Robin Stott

Light and Space — Robert Irwin, light installation (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0 · © Calstanhope — Robert Irwin, light installation (Los Angeles County Museum of Art) — Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · © Calstanhope

At a glance

Visual cues

Objects erased
Rooms filled with light
Thresholds of perception
Apertures to the sky

Best used for

Designing a room itself as the experience, with no object placed in it
Making light that changes over time the central attraction of a building

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Dictionary entry

Type: Finish all wording outside the room and leave no text or marker inside
Composition: Erase corners and edges so no break between surfaces can be found
Material: Scrims, resin and built up coatings, with the source itself hidden
Caution: Turning the light up to make it noticeable destroys an effect that depends on perceptual thresholds, leaving nothing but a glowing interior.
Further study: James Turrell / Robert Irwin / the Pacific Standard Time exhibitions

Related entries

Op Art (オプ・アート)Same Geometric Abstraction lineage.Compare Light and Space and Op Art
Minimalism (ミニマリズム)Shared effects: Calm.Compare Light and Space and Minimalism

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Link: https://indexstyle.org/styles/light-and-space
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