Large Floor Neon 1969

Curator: Oh, I find this rather soothing, actually. All those cool blue lines – very calming. Like standing under a gentle, artificial waterfall. Editor: And it’s all just a plan! Stephen Antonakos conceived this "Large Floor Neon" back in 1969. It's a drawing, a design for a sculptural installation using neon, aiming for something both minimalist and monumental. What strikes me, though, is its radical utopian spirit, dreaming of light and space in a way that rejects the commercialization of the medium. Curator: Radical, yes, but there's something meditative about its geometry too. All those vertical lines meeting in the right angles on the floor, like…well, like you’re supposed to kneel! Not in a religious way exactly, more in an accepting-the-universe way, like giving yourself up to it. Editor: Well, there's a political dimension to that surrendering. Who has access to these spaces? Whose visions of "utopia" are centered? We should also recognize that minimalism emerged in a particular historical moment – it often distances itself from specific cultural or social contexts, and in effect, maintains existing hierarchies. The focus on pure form sometimes acts as an avoidance of the grit of social realities. Curator: True enough, I see what you mean... still, there’s also an undeniable joy of playing with the very idea of light – the idea of transforming an environment with simple lines. It reminds me that creation begins in these fragile sketches before becoming something solid and heavy. Maybe it's in those very traces that you get to catch its soul. Editor: The ethereal promise, yes. Antonakos invites us to envision new structures and question established norms through artistic interventions. The interplay between light, space, and form becomes a tool for sparking public discourse about who belongs where, what feels safe, and how light can change space and bodies. It encourages people to move, gather, and reflect. It goes way beyond aesthetics, it speaks of freedom, maybe... or its continuous lack. Curator: I agree…it has me dreaming about where light and color could lead if we were courageous enough to chase after them. Editor: Indeed! This is why returning to drawings such as "Large Floor Neon" offers important entry points when looking at today's artistic proposals for urban reclamation or reimagining of public space. It pushes us to remain curious, and attentive.