See How James Turrell Translated his Guggenheim Light-Art Spectacle Into Three Luminous Ukiyo-e Woodcuts
How do you make prints that convey the thingness of light?
This was the challenge confronting James Turrell when he started a print series based on Aten Reign, his spectacular chromatic installation in the Guggenheim’s atrium last year.
The result, a series of luminous Ukiyo-e prints, is now on view at Pace Prints on 57th Street.
To make the prints, his first woodcuts, Turrell collaborated with master printer Yasu Shibata, with assistance from Justin Israels at the Pace Editions Ink Workshop. The process started with photographs, shot by Turrell as the colored ellipses of light in Aten Reign shifted with the time of day. Next he matched each color to a feeling, which the team conveyed using 14 colors, 12 woodblocks, and one metal plate. Six blocks and six proofs are part of the show, along with the three luminous woodcuts in Suite from Aten Reign.
