Dan Flavin. Early light sculptures

Art from fluorescent tubes

In 1963, Dan Flavin creates his first light sculpture with a diagonal fluorescent lamp with yellow light, the diagonal of May 25, 1963 (to Constantin Brancusi). From that moment on, he has worked only with existing, factory-produced fluorescent tubes and fixtures. He is concerned not only with the composition of the lamps themselves, but also with how the light alters the experience of space.

Situations

Initially, Flavin's 'situations', as he calls his installations, are simple compositions of a few fluorescent tubes on the wall, but they soon become more spatial and complex. They lean in a corner, are placed along a plinth, accentuate a doorframe or protrude boldly into the space.