Dan Flavin exhibition opens at Guggenheim Museum Bilbao
12 November 2026 – 4 April 2027
To mark the company’s 125th anniversary, from 12 November 2026 to 4 April 2027, visitors will be able to enjoy the work of Dan Flavin, one of the great masters of Minimalism, at the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao
An unmissable exhibition in which the innovative use of light transforms space and the perception of art. It joins the museum’s other major exhibitions and includes works from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and the Iberdrola Collection
On 12 November 2026, the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao will open an exhibition dedicated to Dan Flavin, one of the most influential Minimalist artists and a master of light. The exhibition will be open to visitors until 4 April 2027 and forms part of the events commemorating the museum’s 125th anniversary.
Over a period of more than 30 years, Flavin (New York, 1933–1996) revolutionised contemporary art by dispensing with the traditional boundaries of the frame, the pedestal and other exhibition conventions. His choice of the fluorescent lamp as a simple and accessible aesthetic object aligned him with a generation of artists exploring industrial materials, elemental forms and non-hierarchical relationships between the components of their works.
From 1963 onwards, Flavin developed his own visual language using commercially available fluorescent lights, creating “corners”, “monuments”, “barriers” and “corridors” that transformed space and the viewer’s perception. His Minimalist approach, based on essential forms and on light as a central element, established him as a key figure in the movement.
The exhibition in Bilbao brings together important works from the 1960s to the 1980s, many of them from the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, with particular emphasis on his early works. In addition, several Dan Flavin pieces from the Iberdrola Collection will form part of the exhibition, offering a unique opportunity to appreciate the evolution of his work and its impact on the history of contemporary art.
