Skyspace at Pomona College brings ‘awareness of light, sky and the activity of perception’ – Daily Bulletin

The James Turrell Skyspace, a visual art installation at Pomona College, comes to life at dawn and dusk. “Dividing the Light” opened in 2007 in the Draper Courtyard on the campus in Claremont and “heightens the viewer’s awareness of light, sky and the activity of perception,” the Pomona College website says. The changing light in the early morning hours and as the day winds down, brings vibrant color and continual visual shifts to the installation. It’s “keyed to sunset and sunrise every day,” the website says. “The evening program’s greeting begins about 10 minutes before sunset, the program begins at sunset, and depending on the time of year the program varies” between 35 and 42 minutes “followed by an exit greeting light.” The morning program begins about 50 minutes before sunrise. A visitor takes a picture at dusk during the nightly light show at the James Turrell Skyspace in the Draper Courtyard at Pomona College in Claremont on Tuesday evening June 9, 2026. The lighting programs are keyed to sunset and sunrise every day. The daily evening program’s greeting begins about 10 minutes before sunset, the program begins at sunset, and depending on the time of year the program varies between 35 minutes to 42 minutes according to the Pomona College website. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) Phoebe Chu and her mother Polly Chu look up at the changing colors during the nightly light show at the James Turrell Skyspace in the Draper Courtyard at Pomona College in Claremont on Tuesday evening June 9, 2026. The daily lighting programs are keyed to sunset and sunrise every day. The evening program’s greeting begins about 10 minutes before sunset, the program begins at sunset, and depending on the time of year the program varies between 35 minutes to 42 minutes according to the Pomona College website. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) Visitors to the James Turrell Skyspace in the Draper Courtyard at Pomona College look for a place to sit during the nightly light show in Claremont on Tuesday evening June 9, 2026. The lighting programs are keyed to sunset and sunrise every day. The daily evening program’s greeting begins about 10 minutes before sunset, the program begins at sunset, and depending on the time of year the program varies between 35 minutes to 42 minutes according to the Pomona College website. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) Visitors to the James Turrell Skyspace in the Draper Courtyard at Pomona College look up during the nightly light show in Claremont on Tuesday evening June 9, 2026. The daily lighting programs are keyed to sunset and sunrise every day. The evening program’s greeting begins about 10 minutes before sunset, the program begins at sunset, and depending on the time of year the program varies between 35 minutes to 42 minutes according to the Pomona College website. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) Visitors sit and enjoy the James Turrell Skyspace light show in the Draper Courtyard at Pomona College in Claremont on Tuesday evening June 9, 2026. The lighting programs are keyed to sunset and sunrise every day. The daily evening program’s greeting begins about 10 minutes before sunset, the program begins at sunset, and depending on the time of year the program varies between 35 minutes to 42 minutes according to the Pomona College website. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) Visitors arrive at dusk at for the nightly light show at the James Turrell Skyspace in the Draper Courtyard at Pomona College in Claremont on Tuesday evening June 9, 2026. The lighting programs are keyed to sunset and sunrise every day. The daily evening program’s greeting begins about 10 minutes before sunset, the program begins at sunset, and depending on the time of year the program varies between 35 minutes to 42 minutes according to the Pomona College website. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) Visitors sit and enjoy the James Turrell Skyspace light show in the Draper Courtyard at Pomona College in Claremont on Tuesday evening June 9, 2026. The lighting programs are keyed to sunset and sunrise every day. The daily evening program’s greeting begins about 10 minutes before sunset, the program begins at sunset, and depending on the time of year the program varies between 35 minutes to 42 minutes according to the Pomona College website. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) 1 of 7 A visitor takes a picture at dusk during the nightly light show at the James Turrell Skyspace in the Draper Courtyard at Pomona College in Claremont on Tuesday evening June 9, 2026. The lighting programs are keyed to sunset and sunrise every day. The daily evening program’s greeting begins about 10 minutes before sunset, the program begins at sunset, and depending on the time of year the program varies between 35 minutes to 42 minutes according to the Pomona College website. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG) The space often draws passersby for peaceful reflection. The lighting program “bathes the canopy in changing colors, from goldenrod to turquoise. … One moment it’s a dreamy lavender, another it’s an ominous tablet of black,” the website says. A shallow pool is centered beneath an opening to the sky and mirrors the sky. Pasadena-born Turrell is known for his light work. Pomona College’s Skyspace is the only one in Southern California available to the public, however there are others throughout the world, the website says.