James Turrell: The Light Inside explores the remarkable career of James Turrell (born 1943). Raised in a Quaker household and coming of age in the radical climate of the 1960s, Turrell has created some of the most beautiful art of our time, treating light as a material presence in perfectly calculated installations. Viewers are invited to investigate the margins of perception, to measure the passage of time, and—in the artist’s words—“to enter the light.”

This exhibition features seven immersive light environments, ranging from Turrell’s first projections of the late 1960s to his most recent Tall Glass series of 2010–13, as well as three print portfolios and site plans relating to Roden Crater. All are from the collection of the MFAH, and most have been created for this exhibition. Also on view is The Light Inside, the Museum’s beloved light tunnel, commissioned by Isabel B. and Wallace S. Wilson to connect the Caroline Wiess Law Building with the Audrey Jones Beck Building.



James Turrell: The Light Inside is part of a nationwide celebration of Turrell’s work. It was conceived in conjunction with concurrent exhibitions on view this summer at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York. The appreciation of Turrell's work in Houston extends from the MFAH to the artist’s two local Skyspaces: One Accord at the Live Oak Friends Meeting House in the Heights, and Twilight Epiphany at Rice University in the Museum District.

Related Publications

James Turrell: A Retrospective and the limited edition of “The Light Inside” Turrell Portfolio are available through the MFA Shop (713.639.7360) and the Museum’s Hirsch Library (713.639.7325).