'Skylight,' the latest in the 'Solid Light' series,
A new sensory experience of light, space, and time
The shape created by lighting slanting down from a ceiling 10.8 meters high feels almost like a sculptural work you could reach out and touch. It engraves geometric patterns sharply onto the floor and, within the haze, forms the outline of a hollow pyramid. 'Skylight' (2020), the latest in Anthony McCall's 'Solid Light' series, offers a unique artistic experience that integrates light, space, time, and sound, living up to his reputation as the 'artist who sculpts with light.'
According to Anthony McCall, who attended a press conference held at Futura Seoul in Bukchon, Seoul on April 28, he did not originally intend to use light as a sculptural medium. It was during his exploration of the possibility that film itself could become a performance?not just a means of documenting performance?that a chance discovery sparked a new form of art. He explained, "At the time, minimalism and conceptual art were influential, so I was thinking a lot about simplification. That led me to use light, and in the process, I discovered that three-dimensional forms could emerge."
The work that marks this beginning is 'Landscape for Fire' (1972). This video piece, shot on 16mm color film and lasting 6 minutes and 55 seconds, arranges 36 flames in a 6x6 grid, visualizing the orderly ignition and extinction of fire to depict the intersection of natural elements and human intervention. Through this, it raises questions about temporality and materiality. The artist explained that while editing the video, he began to consider "the possibility that film itself could become a performance."
After relocating from the UK to New York in 1973, McCall presented 'Line Describing a Cone,' shifting to installation works that treat light as a sculptural medium and fully launching the 'Solid Light' series. This series, a branch of 'Expanded Cinema,' crosses the boundaries of film, sculpture, and drawing, offering an immersive experience that presupposes the physical involvement of the audience.
Regarding this exhibition, McCall stated, "I hope each visitor approaches these three-dimensional and ephemeral works with an open mind. I encourage everyone to take their time, not rush, and explore the works both inside and out at their own pace. Since the forms themselves change and move gradually, I hope visitors will experience these changes freely as they wander through them."
This exhibition presents a comprehensive overview of Anthony McCall's 50-year artistic career. 'Traveling Wave' (1972), his first installation work created in the UK, is considered one of McCall's representative pieces alongside 'Solid Light.' Instead of light, it uses sound as a medium, with sensory waves physically occupying the space. High-density sound waves composed of white noise repeatedly move along the 12-meter-long floor of the exhibition hall, captivating the audience's hearing. As the speed and volume of the sound waves increase from one end, they explode at the opposite end, creating a sound reminiscent of waves crashing.
The exhibition will continue at the art space Futura Seoul from May 1 to September 7.
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