
LIGHT+CHANGE Installation View 26
2022
This large scale light installation features undulating tubular forms filled with programmed LED light, creating a dynamic color choreography that shifts continuously over time. The work's curved architectural geometry suggests flowing channels or pathways, animated by an internal luminous system that transforms the viewer's perception of space and temporal progression. Installed at the Palm Springs Art Museum, the piece demonstrates Smith's characteristic exploration of light as a sculptural medium, where color and brightness operate as compositional elements rather than fixed aesthetic attributes. The installation's scale and immersive presence engage the gallery environment, inviting viewers to witness the perpetual transformation of form through the manipulation of programmed illumination. Reflective surfaces within the design amplify the optical complexity, creating a meditation on how light shapes our understanding of architectural space and perceptual experience.
- Location
- Palm Springs Art Museum, Palm Springs, CA
Notes
Installation view of LIGHT+CHANGE, Palm Springs Art Museum, Nov 25 2022 to May 7 2023. Photo: Lance Gerber.
More by Phillip K. Smith III
Collectors of Phillip K. Smith III
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Artists in conversation

James Turrell
American · b. 1943

Turrell creates immersive light installations that transform architectural space and manipulate viewer perception through carefully programmed luminous environments, directly paralleling Smith's use of light as a sculptural medium in controlled interior settings.

Leo Villareal
American · b. 1967

Villareal uses programmed LED arrays within large scale geometric structures to produce choreographed color sequences that shift over time, sharing Smith's core approach of merging digital light programming with architectural sculptural form.
Olafur Eliasson
Danish-Icelandic · b. 1967
Eliasson creates phenomenological installations that use light, color, and geometry to alter viewers' spatial and temporal perception within museum environments, closely mirroring Smith's interest in environmental light art and perceptual experience.


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