# James Turrell artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/james-turrell/
Profile generated: 2026-08-24T20:17:23.219Z
Quality: medium confidence, adequate sources

## Artist identity

- Nationality: American
- Common media: Sculpture, Light-based installations

## Portrait

![James Turrell](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e2/James-Turrell-medals-hi-res.jpg/1280px-James-Turrell-medals-hi-res.jpg)
Jocelyn Augustino · Public domain
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:James-Turrell-medals-hi-res.jpg

## About James Turrell

James Turrell, born in 1943, is an American artist and sculptor whose practice centers on light and spatial experience. Public authority records establish his identity, while the collected biographical source associates him with Light and Space and describes installations that bring natural light, artificial color, and architectural settings into a single perceptual encounter. Instead of using illumination only to reveal an object, Turrell makes light, color, space, and the viewer’s perception central to the work. Collectors may therefore encounter his name across more than one property category, including sculpture, light-based works, and material related to installations or projects. This breadth makes precise identification especially important. A catalog entry should distinguish a self-contained object from documentation, a study, an edition, or material associated with a larger installation. Appraisily’s current public artist page aggregates 174 auction records under James Turrell, so comparable-lot research should begin with careful matching by work type rather than by artist name alone.

## Common works and media

Auction and appraisal contexts may include sculpture, light-based works, and property described in relation to spatial installations. These categories can differ substantially in physical form: some works may be self-contained, while others may depend on architectural placement, controlled illumination, technical components, or installation instructions. The collected sources do not establish a dependable list of prints, drawings, editions, or named series, so those classifications should be taken from the individual work’s documentation rather than inferred from the artist’s broader reputation.

## Market and appraisal context

Market analysis for James Turrell should begin by identifying the exact category and format of the property. A self-contained sculpture is not directly comparable with installation-related material or a light-dependent work whose physical and technical requirements shape its presentation. Comparable research should be narrowed by medium, scale, sale date, and auction-record type, while attribution, provenance, condition, completeness, and edition information should be verified from the individual object and its documentation. The collected pack supplies an Appraisily signal of 174 records but no fetched major-auction-house essays or detailed lot data. Accordingly, this profile does not assert a price trend, rank series, or predict value; a defensible appraisal requires object-specific evidence and genuinely comparable public sales.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine public artist-identity research with auction records and, when available, auction-house context, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lots. Object-specific evidence remains necessary for attribution and valuation.

## Sources

- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q740966
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/9895799/
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n80130447
- James Turrell: https://jamesturrell.com
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/5981
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Turrell
- Appraisily: https://appraisily.com/artist/james-turrell/
- Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:James-Turrell-medals-hi-res.jpg