James Turrell @ Wolfsburg Kunstmusem

Throughout history the sky and the stars have always been used by mankind to find direction and purpose. Astronomers, sailors, mathematicians, and astrologists alike have searched for answers by looking up towards the celestial blue. Offering endless freedom and possibility, the sky also confronts us with the deep mysteries of the universe.

Walking inside one of James Turrell’s latest installations in Wolfsburg’s Kunstmuseum, one cannot help but be transfixed by the same wonderment. Working exclusively with the museum’s structure, the Wolfsburg project covers an impressive ground span of 700 meters and is built 11 meters high, reaching the top of the museum’s glass roof.

At the center of the exhibition is a magnificent Ganzfeld-type piece, dubbed ‘Bridget’s Bardot’, the largest walk-in light installation he has built to date. It is as if Turrell has somehow pulled the sky down to us so we can experience the power of light directly.

The bright lights that permeate the space change, from deep blues to effervescent violets. The sensation is like being underwater in a clear ocean when the blue light hits and washes the walls in color. And as the color transforms, so does your mood and outlook. In this way, Turrell asks us to explore time, space, and light in one supernova.

The installation is a reflection of Turrell’s famed Roden Crater project, where he is turning an extinct volcano into an observatory.

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by Henry Guyer
Gloobbi Art

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