NMAC Foundation presents James Turrell - e-flux

JAMES TURRELL SECOND WIND OPENING MAY 30

http://www.fundacionnmac.org/ THE NMAC Foundation presents a new site specific project by the artist James Turrell. Second Wind is an underground architectural skyspace piece, in which viewers enter an inner pyramid, via a tunnel. Inside is a stone stupa, surrounded by a pool. Stupas are circular domes used in Buddhist architecture, and whose shape and position have the effect of making the cosmos appear closer. The passageway into the stupa leads to a room with a circular hole in the ceiling, open to the sky. Here, visitors can sit down and watch the changes of light "sculpted" by the artist. Turrell particularly recommends enjoying it in twilight, when light is at its most intense and the colours of the sky are enhanced, altering the viewer's perception of the sky as a space, a shape and an object. The historical and artistic relevance of the work of James Turrell (Los Angeles, California, 1943) lies in his ability to examine the way, in which we perceive light, and to isolate those features and present them to the viewer in each of his works. Instead of showing us the results of his research into the psychological perception of light, Turrell wants viewers to discover them for themselves, through their own experience. With his artworks, he offers us the chance to understand the various features of light and solar energy, and how the retina responds when faced with the changes in brightness and colour that take place throughout the day and in our planet's two different hemispheres. His fascination with the phenomena of light is related to his personal, inward search for mankind's place in the universe. Influenced by his Quaker upbringing, which he characterizes as having a 'straightforward, strict presentation of the sublime', Turrell's art prompts greater self-awareness though a similar discipline of silent contemplation, patience, and meditation.