Documented artwork / solar light installation
Sun Painting
Credit as documented: Peter Erskine
Sun Painting turns daylight into moving fields of color inside Lafayette Library in California. Erskine's 2009 installation directs sunlight through mirrors and laser-cut prisms in a vertical light shaft, projecting color across walls, floors, furniture and visitors. The composition changes as the sun moves, with seasonal conditions and weather altering the result. A person stepping into the light can change the visible pattern, making the library's occupants part of the encounter rather than merely spectators.
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At a glance
- Year / version
- 2009
- Materials
- sunlight, laser-cut prisms, mirrors, plexiglas skylight
- Documented setting
- indoor
- Dimensions
- Light shaft: 5 ft square × 10 ft high.
- Dimensions apply to
- Optical shaft only; projected light has no fixed envelope.
- Availability
- Unconfirmed
Places & versions
Installation history
Historical presentations. A past installation does not establish the current location or suitability for a new site.
2009
Lafayette Library, Lafayette, California
- Site
- Lafayette Library
- City
- Lafayette
- State / region
- CA
- Country
- United States
- Address
- 3491 Mt Diablo Blvd
Installation details checked 2026-10-17.
Materials and construction
A plexiglas skylight caps the shaft, which measures five feet square and ten feet high. Mirrors and prisms line the interior to redirect and mix the light.
Presentation and site context
The artist documents the work at 3491 Mount Diablo Boulevard. The shaft dimensions describe the optical apparatus, while its colored effects spread into the surrounding library.
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Sources
- erskinesolarart.net ↗ · Checked 2026-10-17