Last Chance: Anthony McCall's 'First Light' at Fort Mason (SF)

"The exhibition presents Line Describing a Cone (1973), Conical Solid (1974), and Cone of Variable Volume (1974), works that invite viewers to step away from the screen and into the sculptural beams of projected light themselves. As theatrical haze catches the projector's light, evolving geometric forms materialize in three-dimensional space, creating elegant structures that viewers can walk through, touch, and interact with."

"Over the course of their durations, these works transform spectators into participants and galleries into playing fields, making space for both contemplation and action. The works begin as film animations. In Line Describing a Cone, a single white point extends into a slowly curving line, building to a full circle across its running time."

Anthony McCall's groundbreaking 'solid light' works from the early 1970s transform cinema into interactive sculpture by projecting animated light through theatrical haze to create three-dimensional geometric forms in physical space. The exhibition features three seminal pieces: Line Describing a Cone (1973), Conical Solid (1974), and Cone of Variable Volume (1974). These works begin as film animations that materialize as tangible light sculptures viewers can walk through, touch, and experience. The installations convert passive spectators into active participants, blurring boundaries between film, sculpture, drawing, and performance. McCall's pioneering approach established a revolutionary artistic practice that influenced contemporary immersive art movements.

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