One of the champions of Minimalism, and best known for the works using fluorescent bulbs, Dan Flavin challenged the traditional concept of art through the use of pure light. His work exists in an ambiguous area between painting and sculpture. The variability inherent in his chosen medium allows for the exploration of painterly elements, such as line and color, while the physicality of the work creates a space. Untitled (to Donna) 6 is an example in which Flavin incorporated an architectural space in the work. The mundane fluorescent light is a symbol for modern, industrial society as well as the agent that disrupts plastic elements such as space, color, and line. Flavin's interest in light is grounded in the history of Western painting, and carries transcendent implications and an allusion to the spiritual. (AK)

(Born in Jamaica, New York, U.S.A. 1933, and died in Riverhead, New York, U.S.A.,1996)