James Turrell is best known for making experiential installations that are activated by light and space. Turrell has pushed concepts of perception and immersion for more than five decades, starting in southern California in the 1960s. With a background in psychology and a passion for aviation, Turrell is inspired by light and its ability to obscure, highlight, divide, and sculpt. Many of his installations present all-consuming, diffused, often colorful lighting conditions that activate built environments. He often describes the experience of his work as “the thingness of light itself.” Turrell’s use of light allows for individual perception to create a new reality that supersedes abstraction.

–Sophia Figueroa, from the Glenstone Field Guide