ART–ARC–VAL
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De Wain Valentine
Atmospheric Practices
Light as mass
ART–ARC–VAL
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Light as mass
De Wain Valentine
ART–ARC–VAL
Light as mass
Index Code:
ART–ARC–VAL
Orgin:
Fort Collins, USA / Venice Beach, USA
Field Notes:
light as mass · transparency as monument · material as air
Defining Moment:
Early 1960s — light as mass; perception became space

De Wain Valentine

( 
1936–2022
 )
dee-wayne val-en-tyne

Valentine built a world where resin carried gravity.

His translucent columns and discs compress atmosphere into solid form — clarity given weight.

Each polished surface holds the horizon like liquid architecture.

‍

In his world, light behaves as substance: perception fixed into monument.

Structural Focus

Material as Condition

Material behavior determines outcome more than composition or image. Gravity, density, texture, or resistance guide form.

In De Wain Valentine’s work, this approach appears where resin and polish activate optical depth through light.

Position

Material as Condition

Material behavior determines outcome more than composition or image. Gravity, density, texture, or resistance guide form.

In De Wain Valentine’s work, this approach appears where resin and polish activate optical depth through light.
Chromatic Fields
Color fields operate as spatial and structural organizers.
Systems of Clarity
Order and coherence arise through disciplined systems and constraints.
Atmosphere
Atmosphere accumulates through calibrated light, tone, and spatial pacing.
Material
Material behavior governs form through weight, resistance, and constraint.
Proportion
Proportion organizes coherence through measured intervals, scale, and relation.
Art
Form operates as a site for material, perceptual, and conceptual inquiry.
Light and Space
Perception is shaped through light, volume, and environmental conditions.
California Minimalism
Minimal form is inflected by light, landscape, and material warmth.
Image Credits
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Context

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Observartory

De Wain Valentine — Resin Works
Structual Relations
The following practices are connected through shared structural decisions in form, material, and spatial logic.

By Structural Focus

ⓘ
How are these related?
Quiet Modernism relates practices through how form is organized rather than how it appears. Connections emerge through shared structural conditions — such as repetition, constraint, spatial organization, material behavior, or duration — even when outcomes differ.

A single grouping may reflect multiple overlapping structural concerns.
Peter Alexander
Color as air
James Turrell
Light as architecture

In Dialogue

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