Environments

Environments is a term used as an alternative name for installation art. It refers to mixed-media constructions or assemblages, usually devised for a specific site and for a temporary period, which the viewer can physically enter and experience with the whole body. Unlike a traditional painting or sculpture contemplated at a distance, an environment surrounds the visitor, transforming them from a passive observer into a participant in the space. The concept became widespread in the late 1950s and early 1960s, when artists began to move beyond the frame and the pedestal to create total spatial situations. A key figure was Allan Kaprow, who linked the idea of environments directly to happenings; his early rooms filled with objects became a model for the genre. The tradition of environments also includes the work of Claes Oldenburg and Edward Kienholz, with his grim lifelike tableaux, as well as many experiments of Pop art and Neo-Dada. Historically the term marks an important stage in the shift from object-based art to spatial experience, which later crystallised into the independent field of installation.