Gallery may hold art in the making

HOW can a museum contain the work of an artist whose most famous works are philosophical pieces on the nature of perception, ranging from small holes cut into a glass window to a 134,000-square-foot garden?

For Robert Irwin, designer of the garden at the Getty Center, the San Diego Museum of Contemporary Art has come up with two solutions: It’ll have a huge retrospective of the work of this Light and Space pioneer in its downtown campus in fall 2007.

And when the downtown campus’ refurbishment is complete, the museum will have, it hopes, Irwin himself. That is, part of the Santa Fe Depot, a 1915 Amtrak and light rail station the museum is turning into an exhibition space, will contain a new studio for Irwin that will open, along with the newly expanded campus, next January.

Hugh Davies, the museum’s director, points out that the studio will not be open to the public and most will walk into the exhibition space without knowing that one of the nation’s most important artists may be building something inside.

But Davies says it’s an important commitment nonetheless. “For him and for us, it’s the symbolism of having an artist front and center and having his studio literally under our roof.”

Irwin is not, of course, the kind of artist who toils in a studio day to day, the way a 19th century oil painter would. Much of his work involves remaking an existing architectural site or building something huge with lights and windows.

“At this point he really works out of his house,” says Davies. “When he wants to try something out, he will often rent a warehouse space.”

The museum hopes the new studio will fill this role, allowing Irwin to work on large pieces as well as show off work to out-of-town visitors.

The studio will be 430 square feet, with 13-foot ceilings, a separate entrance from the museum, and additional bathroom and storage space. “He can be completely independent,” says Davies, who calls Irwin’s appointment as the museum’s first artist-in-residence a courtesy to an important figure.

“It’s very experimental: I hope he ends up finding it useful. But we have a contingency plan.” Still, “I’m optimistic Mr. Irwin will decide to make art there.”

Davies says he’s known Irwin for roughly 30 years, about half of which the artist has lived in San Diego. But he still isn’t sure how the slightly reclusive Irwin, who was traveling and unavailable for comment, will take to the space.

“If you call him he might say, ‘Aargh, I’m not going to use that place -- it was the museum’s idea.’ ”

*

Scott Timberg