An untitled work by Dan Flavin, dated 1970.
An untitled work by Dan Flavin, dated 1970.

Dan Flavin

Opening November 30, 2019, David Zwirner will present an exhibition of work by American artist Dan Flavin (1933-1996) at its recently opened Paris location. Spanning three decades of his career, this will be the first major presentation of Flavin’s work in the French capital since his 2006 retrospective at the Musée d’Art Moderne de la Ville de Paris.

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Image: Dan Flavin, untitled, 1970. Installation view, David Zwirner, Paris, 2019

Dates
November 30, 2019February 1, 2020
Opening Reception
Saturday, November 30, 6–8 PM
A photo of Dan Flavin installing his exhibition fluorescent light, etc, from Dan Flavin at the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, 1969.

Dan Flavin installing his exhibition fluorescent light, etc, from Dan Flavin at the National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, 1969

“It is what it is, and it ain’t nothin’ else…. There is no overwhelming spirituality you are supposed to come into contact with…. And it is very easy to understand. One might not think of light as a matter of fact, but I do... as plain and open and direct an art as you will ever find.” —Dan Flavin, quoted in Michael Gibson, “The Strange Case of the Fluorescent Tube,” Art International 1, 1987

“Three main aspects of Flavin’s work are the fluorescent tubes as the source of light, the light diffused throughout the surrounding space or cast upon nearby surfaces, and the arrangement together or placement upon surfaces of the fixtures and tubes. The lit tubes are intense and very definite. They are very much a particular visible state, a phenomenon.”
—Donald Judd, “Aspects of Flavin's Work,” catalogue essay for the exhibition Dan Flavin, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, 1969

A cool white and daylight fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, titled untitled (to Cy Twombly) 2, dated 1972.

Dan Flavin

untitled (to Cy Twombly) 2, 1972
cool white and daylight fluorescent light

4 ft. (122 cm) square across a corner

A pink, yellow, and blue fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, titled untitled (for Frederika and Ian) 3, dated 1987.

Dan Flavin

untitled (for Frederika and Ian) 3, 1987
pink, yellow, and blue fluorescent light

6 ft. (183 cm) on the diagonal

“Flavin's idea was to make art out of off-the-rack industrial light fixtures. A few sizes. A handful of colors. Just follow his instructions. It seemed, as an approach, utterly impersonal and possibly not even art as people then knew it. But like so many other radical artistic reactions against Abstract Expressionism's stress on touch and raw emotion, it was the unlikely route to often ecstatic utterance. It consciously blurred the distinction between art and architecture, seizing architecture as part of art's sculptural vocabulary, incorporating corners, walls, doorways and windows, creating a category that was a melting pot of painting, sculpture and design…. His fluorescent tubes were not about transporting viewers elsewhere. They were about sharpening our attunement to the immediate surroundings. —Michael Kimmelman in a 2004 New York Times review of the exhibition Dan Flavin: A Retrospective, which traveled internationally from 2004 to 2007

An installation view of the exhibition Dan Flavin, at David Zwirner Paris, dated November 2019 to February 2020.
An installation view of the exhibition Dan Flavin, at David Zwirner Paris, dated November 2019 to February 2020.
An installation view of the exhibition Dan Flavin, at David Zwirner Paris, dated November 2019 to February 2020.
An installation view of the exhibition Dan Flavin, at David Zwirner Paris, dated November 2019 to February 2020.
An installation view of the exhibition Dan Flavin, at David Zwirner Paris, dated November 2019 to February 2020.
An installation view of the exhibition Dan Flavin, at David Zwirner Paris, dated November 2019 to February 2020.
An installation view of the exhibition Dan Flavin, at David Zwirner Paris, dated November 2019 to February 2020.
An installation view of the exhibition Dan Flavin, at David Zwirner Paris, dated November 2019 to February 2020.
An untitled cool white and warm fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, dated 1973.

Dan Flavin

untitled, 1973
cool white and warm white fluorescent light

10 ft. (305 cm) wide
Edition of 3

A red, yellow, and blue fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, titled untitled (in memory of "Sandy" Calder) V, dated 1977.

Dan Flavin

untitled (in memory of "Sandy" Calder) V, 1977
red, yellow, and blue fluorescent light

10 ft. (305 cm) wide
Edition of 5

An untitled blue and red fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, dated 1970.

Dan Flavin

untitled, 1970
blue and red fluorescent light

modular units, each made of two 8-foot (244 cm) vertical fixtures and 2 8-foot (244 cm) horizontal fixtures: length variable
Edition of 3

An untitled daylight and cool white fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, dated 1970.

Dan Flavin

untitled, 1970
daylight and cool white fluorescent light

4 ft. (122 cm) square across a corner
Edition of 5

A cool white and daylight fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, titled untitled (to Cy Twombly) 2, dated 1972.

Dan Flavin

untitled (to Cy Twombly) 2, 1972
cool white and daylight fluorescent light

4 ft. (122 cm) square across a corner
Edition of 5

A cool white fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, titled "a leaning diagonal" of March 27, 1964 (to David Smith), dated 1964.

Dan Flavin

"a leaning diagonal" of March 27, 1964 (to David Smith), 1964
cool white fluorescent light

8 ft. (244 cm) long, leaning

A pink and red fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, titled untitled (for Frederika and Ian) 1, dated 1987.

Dan Flavin

untitled (for Frederika and Ian) 1, 1987
pink and red fluorescent light

6 ft. (183 cm) long on the diagonal
Edition of 5

A pink, red, and yellow fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, titled untitled (for Frederika and Ian) 2, dated 1987.

Dan Flavin

untitled (for Frederika and Ian) 2, 1987
pink, red, and yellow fluorescent light

6 ft. (183 cm) long on the diagonal
Edition of 5

A pink, yellow, and blue fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, titled untitled (for Frederika and Ian) 3, dated 1987.

Dan Flavin

untitled (for Frederika and Ian) 3, 1987
pink, yellow, and blue fluorescent light

6 ft. (183 cm) long on the diagonal
Edition of 5

A pink, blue, and green fluorescent light sculpture by Dan Flavin, titled untitled (for Frederika and Ian) 4, dated 1987.

Dan Flavin

untitled (for Frederika and Ian) 4, 1987
pink, blue, and green fluorescent light

6 ft. (183 cm) long on the diagonal
Edition of 5

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