Sit inside a light sculpture that is never performed twice
Improvised live, Saturdays only
Lumonics is a studio north of downtown Denver filled with illuminated sculptures by Dorothy and Mel Tanner. On Saturday evenings it becomes a performance space: you sit or lie among the pieces while light, video and music are run live around you.
Why it's unique
The Tanners began making immersive light art in Miami in 1969, which makes this among the first and longest-running light-art studios in the United States. It predates the current wave of immersive art rooms by half a century and is not related to it.
The performance is the part that cannot be repeated anywhere, including here. It is orchestrated live rather than played back, so no two Saturdays are the same and there is no recording of the one you saw. Admirers of the Tanners took the studio on and still run it in their method.
Before you go
Saturday evenings only, roughly 8 to 10:30pm, and the studio is well north of downtown so plan the journey. Check the schedule before setting out.
Go expecting to stay still for a long stretch rather than to walk round photographing things — the piece is built for sitting inside. Dress warm enough to be comfortable not moving.