"My works are not about light, they are light," sums up James Turrell (born 1943 in Los Angeles, lives and works in Flagstaff, Arizona). The artist makes spaces glow, using natural and artificial light in which he immerses the viewer. Turrell began his experiments with light and space at the age of 23. Since then, he has used light in its many forms to explore the boundaries of perception. Light, an omnipresent yet intangible matter, becomes almost physically palpable in the spatial situations of the now 80-year-old. Thus, Turrell's interest also lies "In the perception of light, which one can almost feel. More a feeling than an intellectual idea." Light that appropriates space reifies itself in an expansive way: this is James Turrell's medium.
This solo exhibition is the 11th Häusler Contemporary has hosted for the artist. It presents an overview of Turrell's groundbreaking artistic research and simultaneously documents the longstanding and appreciative partnership between the light artist and the gallery.
Similar to the opening of the Zurich gallery space in 2007, when the «Tall Glass» premiered in Europe, a new example of these large-format works with rear controlled light- emitting diodes found its way to Switzerland this year.
For over three decades, the couple Wolfgang and Christa Häusler has been promoting awareness of Turrell's extraordinary artistic vision internationally by organizing exhibitions and mediating projects in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Denmark, Uruguay and even Mexico.With the upcoming exhibition in Zurich, the gallery is redefining its profile to dedicate itself in the future primarily to the œuvre of James Turrell and the realization of further projects. This transition will be initiated with this show of works by the very artist who designed and inaugurated the gallery space 16 years ago. What will come? More light! By and on James Turrell.
Häusler Contemporary Zürich defines itself - even more concentrated - as a mediator of James Turrell's artistic concepts, a hub for their realization, and as a point of contact for institutions, collectors, and supporters of his art. Three recent realizations can be singled out as examples to illustrate the breadth of this future focus: a full-field installation in Freising, Bavaria, a Skylight in Lower Saxony, and a Skyspace in Zurich.The Freising Diocesan Museum is one of the largest museums of religious history. Since its reopening (October 2022), it has encompassed a full-field installation - a homogeneously illuminated surface filling the entire field of vision. The space dissolves into grainy, diffuse light. James Turrell's title choice, «A CHAPEL FOR LUKE and his scribe Lucius the Cyrene», alludes to the precious icon of Mary in the visual axis of the Ganzfeld entrance.Turrell's Skylight brings "light into the darkness of the soul," says Dr. Matthias Wilkening, CEO of the Wahrendorff Clinic in Lower Saxony, outlining the experience of art combined with the therapeutic effect of light, color, and space. Via a movable dome this interplay is brought to life as soon as the roof of the dining room opens to the sky (February 2023).
The «My Sky» Skyspace, which will open next fall in Zurich, also specifically addresses the needs of the local Children's Hospital. The walk-in room in an elliptical cylinder form is large enough for a hospital bed. The roof is open and shows the sky; closed, it becomes a luminous ellipse. The movable ceiling closes in case of severe weather or helicopter approaches. The hospital is known for research as well as compassionate care. The Skyspace - a gift from the artist to the clinic - is intended to provide soulful support for its patients.
