Media preview of Turrell skyspace at Rice University May 6

MEDIA ADVISORY

B.J. Almond
713-419-9980
balmond@rice.edu

HOUSTON — (May 2, 2012) — The new James Turrell skyspace at Rice University will not open to the public until June 14, but media can get a sneak preview of this work of art Sunday evening, May 6.

What: Media preview of the James Turrell skyspace at Rice University.

When: Sunday, May 6. Interior photos can be taken only between 5:30 and 7:15 p.m. and must be scheduled in advance; the light show will begin around 7:50 p.m.; no interior photography or video is allowed during the light show.

Who: Molly Hipp Hubbard, university art director, will be available for interviews.

Where: East of Alice Pratt Brown Hall, home of the Shepherd School of Music; parking is available in the West Lot accessible from Entrance 18 on Rice Boulevard.

Towering above a 12-foot-high grass berm just east of Rice’s Shepherd School of Music, this pyramid-like experiential work of art will provide two light shows each day – one at sunrise and one at sunset – in conjunction with the arc of the sun. Visitors seated on the skyspace’s lower and upper viewing areas will gaze up at the 72-by-72-foot white roof, which offers a view of the sky through a square opening measuring 14 by 14 feet. Lights on the ceiling will change colors as the sun rises and sets, and these will impact the color of the sky as seen by visitors.

The skyspace can seat up to 120 people, with 44 in the lower viewing area, which is wheelchair-accessible, and 76 in the upper viewing area. Including standing room in the lower view area, the skyspace can accommodate up to 185 people.

Because photographers will not be allowed to take pictures inside the skyspace during light shows, the May 6 preview is being held to allow media access to the interior of this art space without the general public present. Molly Hipp Hubbard, university art director, will be available for interviews.

 The skyspace, which is part of the public art program at Rice University, will be used as a music lab for students at the Shepherd School. The skyspace was made possible by a multimillion-dollar gift from Rice alumna and trustee Suzanne Deal Booth. Rice commissioned celebrated American artist James Turrell to design the skyspace. For more than four decades, Turrell has used light and indeterminate space to extend and enhance perception. Twenty-five countries have a Turrell skyspace; the work at Rice is his 73rd skyspace and the first to be engineered for acoustics and one of the largest. Turrell has two other major projects in Houston: the Live Oak Friends Meetinghouse and “The Light Inside,” a site-specific, artificially lit interior installation at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston.

 Members of the media who want to attend the May 6 preview should arrive by 7:30 p.m. to be seated for the light show, which will begin around 7:50 p.m. Interior photography and video is not permitted during the light show, but exterior shots can convey the colors on the ceiling. Interior shots without the light show can be scheduled between 5:30 and 7:15 p.m. by RSVPing to B.J. Almond at balmond@rice.edu or 713-419-980.

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