Art 21 Response

James Turrell 

Video Link

                                Light Perception                             Color

James Turrell, Second Meeting, 1989 Source: MoMA

Element/Principle: Space & Color

James Turell wants to, through his artwork, transcend people's views on the world and how we perceive it. He believes that we don't perceive the world as it is, we make the world what we wish it to be. This is shown through the installation Second Meeting as Turrell created a cube-shaped structure and had the roof cut out to expose the open sky. Through the absence of space on the roof, there is an inclusion of the unlimited space that comes with the open sky. This allows viewers to see the colors that radiate from the sky, the sun, the moon, and all other astrological elements that change the colors of the world throughout the day. 

James Turrell, Gathas, 2019 Source: dwell

Element/Principle: Balance & Color 

In Gathas we see the focal point of the installation being a radial balance of color. This is a horizontally elongated radial formation created with light projection. Turrell valued how human eyes perceive light, and also studied mathematics in college before he later pursued art in graduate school. After learning about his background in math, it makes sense that many of his pieces include elements of math such as this radial balance. He creates this balance through alterations of color with a darker contrast of pink in the background and more saturated and vibrant pinks in the radial focal point of the installation.