IRWIN
American·1928–2023
Light and Space artist Robert Irwin was best known for his glowing, site-responsive installations, which explore perception and the art viewing process. Irwin’s work has taken the form of fluorescent lights positioned in geometric arrangements, paintings on shaped canvases, and room-sized installations that incorporate windows, dividers, and even plants. Irwin’s urge to move beyond the traditional limits of artmaking is perhaps best exemplified in his design for the Central Garden at the Getty Center, which incorporates flora, water, and aspects of the landscape into an ever-changing environment. Irwin’s work has sold for six figures at auction and belongs in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, the Centre Pompidou, the Dia Art Foundation, the Guggenheim Museum, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney Museum of American Art.
