Sky Art

genre movement c. 1968-2014 United States Germany

Sky Art is the genre pioneered by the German artist Otto Piene - co-founder of the ZERO group and, from 1974, director of MIT's Center for Advanced Visual Studies - who began developing it around 1968 and named it the following year. Taking the open sky as his canvas, Piene drew giant arcs, rainbows, flowers, and figures in the air with translucent helium balloons and lasers, staging them as communal 'Sky Events' that lifted art out of the gallery and across a whole skyline. The practice grew out of ZERO's experiments with light and air and out of Piene's smoke and light works; landmark moments include the Sky Art portfolio of 25 lithographs made at the Tamarind Lithography Workshop (1969), the Olympic Rainbow floated over the Munich Olympic lake at the 1972 closing ceremony, and the inflatable performances he staged with collaborators such as the cellist Charlotte Moorman.

Geschäftshaus Hohe Straße in Köln mit der elektronisch programmierten kinetischen Lichtplastik „Licht und Bewegung“ von Otto Piene, 1966
Geschäftshaus Hohe Straße in Köln mit der elektronisch programmierten kinetischen Lichtplastik „Licht und Bewegung“ von Otto Piene, 1966CC BY-SA 4.0 (credit: Raimond Spekking) · source

Defining characteristics

  • Inflatable balloons and fabric tubes drawing arcs, rainbows, and figures against open sky
  • The sky itself as the canvas, with the city or landscape as viewing frame
  • Night-time illumination: colored light, lasers, and glowing forms visible across a skyline
  • Monumental, temporary events built for whole communities (Sky Ballets, Sky Events)
  • Translucent colored plastic film and air used as primary materials

Key figures

  • Otto Piene (1928-2014) — ZERO co-founder who coined Sky Art in 1969 and staged its balloon sculptures and events
  • Charlotte Moorman (1933-1991) — Cellist and performance artist who collaborated on Piene's Sky Art performances
  • György Kepes (1906-2001) — Founded MIT's Center for Advanced Visual Studies (1967), the institutional home of Sky Art

Example works

  • Sky Art (portfolio of 25 lithographs) — Otto Piene (1969)
  • Olympic Rainbow — Otto Piene (1972)
  • SkyDance/SkyTime — Otto Piene and Elaine Summers (1984)

Sources

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