This Paris exhibition represents the final artistic project conceived by Robert Irwin before his death in 2023, and features sculptures and wall works that reflect his long-standing investigation into perception and the interplay between light and space. Born in Long Beach, California, Irwin began his career as a painter in the 1950s, initially embracing Abstract Expressionism. In the 1960s, he moved away from traditional painting to focus on installations that challenged artistic conventions, becoming a pioneer of the “Light and Space” movement - an artistic current that centered on the use of light, space, and translucent materials to create immersive sensory experiences. Irwin developed the concept of “Conditional Art,” an approach that emphasized the relationship between the artwork, the surrounding environment, and the viewer. His installations often employed unusual materials - such as a semi-transparent fabric known as “scrim” - to manipulate perceptions of space and light, inviting the viewer into a heightened awareness of their surroundings. Over the course of his career, Irwin completed more than fifty site-specific projects, including major interventions at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, Dia:Beacon in New York, and the Chinati Foundation in Marfa, Texas.
