top of page
Rainey Knudson

53. James Turrell, The Light Inside

James Turrell, The Light Inside, 1999. Neon and ambient light, 132 × 246 × 1416 inches.

I took someone there the other day who’d never seen it, and in doing so, saw it with fresh eyes myself. It’s a tunnel, a simple underground connection between two buildings. But every time you visit, the color has changed. It challenges everything you know about the nature of gravity, physical space, and reality itself. You step into it and suddenly you are transported to that time when you took your first thrilling steps, arms outstretched, feeling your way. All you know for sure is the inexorable sense of forward—there’s a destination, a warm, hazy light at the end.




 

To receive a weekly summary of the MFAH 100 series rather than a daily email, please subscribe on my Substack blog The Impatient Reader.

Sign up to receive a notification when a new Impatient Reader is published.

Thanks for subscribing!

IR post subscribe form
bottom of page