I wanted to deal with light directly rather than with paint.
There are very few religious experiences that aren't explained using the vocabulary of light.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote suggests that light plays a crucial role in conveying profound religious or spiritual experiences.
James Turrell highlights the significance of light in the context of spiritual and religious experiences. He suggests that throughout history, various cultures and religions have used the concept of light as a metaphor to symbolize divine, transcendent, or enlightening moments. This reflects the universal appreciation of light as a powerful element in both art and spirituality, emphasizing its ability to convey deep emotional and existential truths.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
During an art exhibition focused on installation pieces involving light, I might use this quote to emphasize the transformative power of light in art.
More from James Turrell
All quotes βIt is only when light is reduced that the pupil opens and feeling goes out of the eyes like touch.
I feel that I want to use light as this wonderful and magic elixir that we drink as Vitamin D through the skin - and I mean, we are literally light-eaters - to then affect the way that we see.
In many cases, if we knew what it would take, we might have thought twice about it, so it's often wonderful that we don't have hindsight.
There are different stages when you fly. The first stage is the dollhouse effect, seeing everything on Earth like it's a model. Suddenly, all of your concerns seem very small.
Space has a way of looking. It seems like it has a presence of vision. When you come into it, it is there, itβs been waiting for you.
Similar quotes
I just would like to keep singing. As soon as I'm not singing well, I hope that I know it, so that I can get off the stage and leave what I have done. I hope I'll know, and if I don't, I hope somebody tells me.
There are more valid facts and details in works of art than there are in history books.
The contemporary American novelist benefits in a way from being ignored. It makes you angrier and makes you want to go into all of those places where you shouldn't.
I am seeking that dance which might be the divine expression of the human spirit through the medium of the body's movement.
I do not have many things that are meaningful to me. Except my doubts and my fears. And my art.
People haven't always been there for me, but music always has.