Dividing the Light, Installation artwork at Pomona College, Claremont, US
Dividing the Light is an artwork made of granite and steel featuring an open canopy that frames the sky and draws your gaze upward. Beneath it sit granite benches and a black reflective pool that catches and mirrors the changing light throughout the day.
Artist James Turrell created this work in 2007 as part of his skyspace series, making it his first public installation in Southern California. The project emerged during a period when artists began exploring light and space as central elements in their practice.
The work shows how light itself can become a medium for artistic expression and changes how we see the space around us. Visitors experience how natural and artificial light mix together throughout the day, transforming the feeling of the place.
The best time to visit is at sunrise or sunset when the LED lights turn on and the interplay between sky and artificial light is most striking. The location is freely accessible from outside, with plenty of seating to sit and observe.
The LED lights embedded beneath the canopy shift through different colors each hour between sunset and sunrise, creating an ever-changing display. This automatic system operates every night, so each visit offers a different color experience.
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