As Above, So Below: Sun + Sunflower in Art History
Hilma af Klint (1862–1944): A spiritual modernist, Hilma’s Altarpiece No. 1 (1907) represents the Sun as a cosmic force. She blended geometry, mysticism, and solar symbolism to channel what she called the "higher worlds."
Hilma af Kint, “Altarpiece No. 1” (1907)
Carlotta Bonnecaze (c. 1870s – unknown)
As the first woman and first Creole designer of Mardi Gras parades in New Orleans, Bonnecaze brought a visionary flair to float and costume design in the late 19th century. Her designs, often rich with celestial and mythological themes, included radiant suns, golden chariots, and solar deities drawn from classical and esoteric sources. Through pageantry, she turned the Sun into a symbol of both spectacle and spiritual majesty.
Carlotta Bonnecaze, “Night and Day” (1895)
Carlotta Bonnecaze, “Vegetable Kingdom” (1892)
Leonora Carrington (1917–2011)
In Carrington’s symbolic dreamscapes, the Sun appears in esoteric form: golden beasts, solar eggs, and radiant halos around alchemical figures. Her writings and paintings often reference solar rituals, fertility, and the unseen forces of transformation—many drawn from Celtic mythology, alchemy, and esoterica.
Lenora Carrington, “Solar Megalomania” (1957)
Dorothea Tanning (1910–2012)
Tanning’s early surrealist paintings explore themes of light through dreamlike spaces.
Dorothea Tanning, “Eine Kleine Nachtmusik” (1943)
Dorothea Tanning, “Le Mirrior” (1950)
James Turrell (b. 1943) – Roden Crater: Turrell’s monumental land art project in an extinct Arizona volcano turns the entire landscape into a solar observatory. Here, viewers are immersed in light itself—reshaping our experience with the sun.
James Turrell, “Roden Crater”
Olafur Eliasson (b. 1967) – The Weather Project (2003): Installed at Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall, this massive glowing Sun (made of mono-frequency lamps and mist) invited visitors to bask beneath it. It sparked collective awe while subtly referencing climate change and artificial environments.
Olafur Eliasson, “The Weather Project” (2003)