Retro·active: Performance Art from 1964–1987

June 14, 2014 – September 21, 2014

Organized to coincide with the Museum’s showing of Independent Curators International’s Performance Now, Retro·active presents a historical view of this important genre. Performance art as a genre exploded onto the art scene in the mid-1960s and developed through the 1970s and 1980s to incorporate audience participation, dance, and video. Six groundbreaking works by artists Carolee Schneemann, Yoko Ono, Chris Burden, Dan Graham, Joan Jonas, and Paul McCarthy trace this pivotal moment and provide an historical context for contemporary performance art.

In Cut Piece, which was first performed in Japan in 1964, in New York in 1965 and later in London, Yoko Ono invites audiences to cut away pieces of her clothing with a pair of scissors. She is virtually motionless throughout the performance, surrendering herself to the different reactions of audience participants.

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Marina Abramovic will also be on view!