Sky high: Venet Foundation welcomes two iconic installations by James Turrell
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- (opens in new tab)
- Sign up to our newsletter Newsletter

A temple of light; a temple of silence. James Turrell’s new installations – collectively grouped under the title 'Inspire the Light' – at the Venet Foundation are one (well, two) of a kind. Staged in the middle of sumptuous Mediterranean gardens, the new skyspace – entitled Elliptic, Ecliptic – seems, from the inside, like a white sculpture carved into the deep blue sky. The second piece, entitled Prana, is an aperture: inside the pitch-dark room, a red rectangle projects a foggy, almost volcanic, crimson hue. Walking into both spaces becomes a physical and metaphysical experience.
'Both installations give me a lot of pleasure. If they both have a strong physical presence, it is their intellectual dimension that fulfills me. They hint at an essential link in art, they are part of the course of art history,' explains Bernar Venet, a master sculptor who received a Lifetime Achievement Award in NY this year for his exemplary career.
'It’s a major art piece from my generation,' Venet adds, 'and although I never met James Turrell personally, this is a way for me to pay tribute to his work.' Set in an old factory and a 17th century mill, the Venet Foundation stands out for its coherence, and Turrell’s two pieces definitely add clout to the young institution.
It took five weeks of construction work, an English expert, four German light masters and an American executive to put the installation together. 'Piecing this skyspace together was like building a new home,' Venet explains. The outcome is spectacular; blending perfectly with the surrounding nature, Turrell’s talent joins Venet’s unique collection of timeless pieces. 'It felt natural for James Turrell to join "the family",' the sculptor comments, highlighting the fact that the Venet Foundation also houses 29 works by Frank Stella (including a breathtaking open-air chapel), five light sculptures by Dan Flavin and pieces by Carl Andre, Donald Judd, Richard Long, François Morellet and Sol LeWitt, to name just a selection.
In Le Muy, on a summer night’s stroll through the gardens, Venet’s vision came to life. Let there be light.
Blending perfectly with the surrounding nature, James Turrell’s talent joins Bernar Venet’s unique collection of timeless pieces. Pictured left: Effondrement: 200 tons, by Bernar Venet, 2015. Courtesy Jérôme Cavalière, Marseille. Right: Diagonal of 74.3°, by Bernar Venet, 2006. Courtesy Serge Demailly, La Cadière-d’Azur. Courtesy Archives Bernar Venet, New York
As Venet explains, 'Both installations give me a lot of pleasure. If they both have a strong physical presence, it is their intellectual dimension that fulfils me. They hint at an essential link in art, they are part of the course of art history.' Pictured: Bernar Venet (right) under James Turrell's Elliptic, Ecliptic installation.
It took five weeks of construction work, an English expert, four German light masters and an American executive to put the installation together – and the outcome is suitably spectacular. Pictured: Elliptic, Ecliptic, 1999.
INFORMATION
’Inspire the Light’ in on view until October. For more information and to schedule a tour, visit the Venet Foundation website (opens in new tab)
ADDRESS
Venet Foundation
365 chemin du Moulin de Serres
83490 Le Muy
VIEW GOOGLE MAPS (opens in new tab)
-
Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance combines bronze and beeswax for expressive candles
Made in Portugal under the French designer's Made in Situ label, 'Bronze and Beeswax' is a series of candles and candleholders whose aesthetic is both organic and minimalist
By Rosa Bertoli • Published
-
Karimoku Commons Kyoto offers an intimate, home-like experience
Karimoku Furniture Inc opens its first Karimoku Commons location in Kyoto, in a former wooden machiya townhouse that offers an intimate experience of the brand
By Danielle Demetriou • Published
-
Venice Biennale 2024: a guide to the artists announced so far
Keep up-to-date with our ongoing list of who’s representing who at the Venice Biennale 2024 – here's what we know so far
By Martha Elliott • Published
-
Ryoji Ikeda and Grönlund-Nisunen saturate Berlin gallery in sound, vision and visceral sensation
At Esther Schipper gallery Berlin, artists Ryoji Ikeda and Grönlund-Nisunen draw on the elemental forces of sound and light in a meditative and disorienting joint exhibition
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
London art exhibitions: a guide for early 2023
Your guide to the best London art exhibitions, and those around the UK, as chosen by the Wallpaper* arts desk
By Harriet Lloyd Smith • Published
-
Paris art exhibitions: a guide to exhibitions this weekend
As Emily in Paris fever puts the city of love at the centre of the cultural map, stay-up-to-date with our guide to the best Paris art exhibitions
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
Cecilia Vicuña’s ‘Brain Forest Quipu’ wins Best Art Installation in the 2023 Wallpaper* Design Awards
Brain Forest Quipu, Cecilia Vicuña's Hyundai Commission at Tate Modern, has been crowned 'Best Art Installation' in the 2023 Wallpaper* Design Awards
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
Michael Heizer’s Nevada ‘City’: the land art masterpiece that took 50 years to conceive
Michael Heizer’s City in the Nevada Desert (1972-2022) has been awarded ‘Best eighth wonder’ in the 2023 Wallpaper* design awards. We explore how this staggering example of land art came to be
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
Cyprien Gaillard on chaos, reorder and excavating a Paris in flux
We interviewed French artist Cyprien Gaillard ahead of his major two-part show, ‘Humpty \ Dumpty’ at Palais de Tokyo and Lafayette Anticipations (until 8 January 2023). Through abandoned clocks, love locks and asbestos, he dissects the human obsession with structural restoration
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
Cerith Wyn Evans: ‘I love nothing more than neon in direct sunlight. It’s heartbreakingly beautiful’
Cerith Wyn Evans reflects on his largest show in the UK to date, at Mostyn, Wales – a multisensory, neon-charged fantasia of mind, body and language
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published
-
The best 7 Christmas installations in London for art lovers
As London decks its halls for the festive season, explore our pick of the best Christmas installations for the art-, design- and fashion-minded
By Harriet Lloyd-Smith • Published