# Olafur Elíasson artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/olafur-eliasson/
Profile generated: 2026-05-09T19:49:42.908Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Nationality: Icelandic, Danish
- Movements: Contemporary installation art, Light and space art, Environmental art
- Common media: Light installations, Sculpture, Photography, Water and atmospheric installations

## About Olafur Elíasson

Olafur Elíasson (born 1967, Copenhagen) is an Icelandic-Danish artist whose practice spans large-scale installation, sculpture, photography, and environmental projects. He is best known for immersive works that harness light, water, air, and color to reshape how viewers perceive physical space. Based in Berlin, Elíasson operates Studio Olafur Eliasson, a multidisciplinary workshop that has produced landmark installations for institutions including Tate Modern and the Museum of Modern Art. Beyond gallery work, he has founded social and environmental ventures such as Little Sun, a clean-energy initiative, and has produced the glacier melt photography series and Ice Watch, a public-art project transporting glacial ice to urban centers. His practice bridges art, science, and activism, making his work equally relevant in museum, public-art, and private-collection contexts.

## Common works and media

Collectors may encounter Elíasson's work in several forms: editioned color photographs (including landscapes and the glacier melt series), sculptural multiples and maquettes related to larger installations, light-based wall and floor works, glass and steel sculptures, prints, and artist's books. Photographs and smaller sculptural editions appear most frequently at auction, while large-scale installations and site-specific commissions are typically acquired through galleries or directly from the studio.

## Market and appraisal context

Olafur Elíasson is represented in major museum collections worldwide, including Tate and MoMA, and his work appears regularly at leading auction houses. Collectors most frequently encounter his editioned photographs, small-scale sculptural multiples, prints, and maquettes for larger installations. Valuation depends on medium, edition size and number, provenance linking to significant exhibitions, and—for light or kinetic works—the condition and completeness of electrical or mechanical components. Unique large-scale installations require appraisal beyond standard auction comparables and may involve site-specific considerations.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine verified artist identity research from authority files, museum records, and official sources with auction records, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lot data when those records are available. For Olafur Elíasson, identity data is grounded in Getty ULAN, VIAF, the Library of Congress Name Authority File, and the artist's official studio site.

## Sources

- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q365691
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olafur_Eliasson
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500116131
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/59058637/
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/nr99021413
- Tate: https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/olafur-eliasson-5239
- The Museum of Modern Art: https://www.moma.org/artists/25982
- RKD - Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/230519
- Olafur Elíasson: https://olafureliasson.net/