American artist Dan Flavin (1933-1996) is one of the most important Minimalist artists of the 20th century. He pioneered using fluorescent light tubing to create art installations, which he called “propositions”. At the time, most did not see light as a valid art material, compared to traditional materials of paint, pencil, and clay. Yet Flavin limited his materials to utilize only these commercially available light fixtures in only standard sizes, shapes and colors—items that were typically found in the local hardware store. Flavin was clearly inspired by Marcel Duchamp’s use of found objects, known for his ground breaking Fountain, 1917, which is actually a urinal. Using this commonplace “technology” of a fluorescent light, Flavin created ‘high art’ installations. The light itself would transform and “sculpt” the exhibition space. He started out making figurations of fluorescent tubes along corridors and corners. In the 1990s, institutions began to give him bigger spaces where he could experiment with light and space. In 1992 he filled the Guggenheim Museum with light fixtures that played off the openness of Frank Lloyd Wright’s architecture, pictured below:
Sources:
http://tmlarts.com/dan-flavin/
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