A small but perfectly formed exhibition by the master of light, James Turrell, has just landed in the West End. I’ve seen lots of his work over the years and he rarely disappoints. For this show he has installed two Wide Glass works, using curved, frosted glass apertures and sophisticated LED lighting. Also, there are two from the Tall Glass series, constructed ‘to create a tangible and physical plane of light’.
Make sure you give each piece a bit of time to work its magic; what you see at first is not what you end up getting with James Turrell. No sooner than you think you have the measure of it, it flips. Whether it’s your eyes or the artwork, or both, Turrell is a master at messing with your senses – a technoed-up Rothko with a better colour palette.
After missing out on the uber limited one-person-at-a-time Bindhu Shards at the Gagosian in 2011, I just hope Roden Crater, his grand meisterwerk in the Arizona desert, opens to the public before I cark it.
James Turrell at Pace Gallery London, 6 Burlington Gardens, London W1 until 5th April. Free
Images: James Turrell ‘Kermandac’, ‘Sensing Thought’ x2.
