PALM BEACH, FLA.- Pace Gallery inaugurated its new seasonal exhibition space in Palm Beach with an exhibition of works by California-based artist James Turrell, on view from November 23 – December 13, 2020. James Turrell features two unique aperture wall installations by the artist, which draw attention to the presence of light and its transformation of viewers’ perception of space. This is the first exhibition at the gallery’s location within The Royal Poinciana Plaza, which will be programmed through spring 2021. James Turrell will be on view during Palm Beach’s New Wave Art Wknd, a non-commercial event celebrating the flourishing contemporary art scene in South Florida.
The works in this presentation vary in scale, shape, and color, and exemplify Turrell’s ongoing investigation into the materiality of light and dedication to engaging viewers with the limits and wonder of human perception. Each work features a unique composition comprising a temporal element in which hundreds of vivid combinations of colors seep into each other as they slowly shift over time. Together, the works create an immersive and changing light-filled environment and a place for meditation, introspection, and awe.
Currently, Turrell is working on his magnum opus: the Roden Crater project. Located in the Painted Desert region of Northern Arizona, Roden Crater is a monumental artwork created within a volcanic cinder that represents the culmination of the artist’s lifelong research in the field of human visual and psychological perception. The exhibition will be open to the public and the gallery will offer extended hours by appointment seven days per week.
Pace will follow local safety guidelines to protect visitors against the spread of COVID-19, including requirements for social distancing, face masks, and frequent disinfecting.
James Turrell will be followed by a series of solo and group presentations by artists from across the gallery’s program of leading contemporary artists and modern masters, including Sam Gilliam, Alexander Calder, Mary Corse, Tara Donovan, Kenneth Noland, Michal Rovner, Joel Shapiro, and Kiki Smith.
James Turrell (b. 1943, Los Angeles), associated with the Light and Space Movement initiated in the 1960s, has dedicated his practice to what he has deemed perceptual art, investigating the immaterial qualities of light. Influenced by the notion of pure feeling in pictorial art, Turrell’s earliest work focused on the dialectic between constructing light and painting with it, building on the sensorial experience of space, color, and perception. Since his earliest Projection Pieces (1966–69), his exploration has expanded through various series, including Skyspaces (1974–), Ganzfelds (1976–), and perhaps most notably, his Roden Crater Project (1977–), a large-scale work in a volcanic cinder cone in the Painted Desert region of northern Arizona. Turrell’s practice has also materialized in small-scale works, including architectural models, holograms, and works on paper.
