James Turrell: Five Things to Know

A pioneer of the Southern Californian Light and Space movement, James Turrell has created immersive works that manipulate light, color and perception around the world since the 1970s. His largest Skyspace in a museum opens in the summer of 2026 at ARoS Aarhus Art Museum in Denmark.

1 - Turrell emerged as a leading figure in the Light and Space movement in Los Angeles in the 1960s.

2 - His father was an aeronautical engineer and Turrell obtained his pilot's license aged 16 deepening his fascination with the sky and the light changing.

3 - In 1977, the artist acquired an extinct volcano cone in 1977 and began the ongoing Roden Crater project, creating a network of tunnels, chambers and viewing points in the heart of Painted Desert in Arizona.

4 - While most of his work is commissioned, Turrell’s works have totaled $1.64m at auction over the past two years.

5 - Swiss collector Donald M. Hess has built the Museo James Turrell on his vineyard in Argentina and there is an informal international club of owners of the artist’s Skyspaces.

Image: As Seen Below – The Dome, a Skyspace by James Turrell. Photograph by Mads Smidstrup. Courtesy of and copyright ARoS