Is Yoko Ono the Most Radical Artist of the Trump Era?
The article explores the resurgence of interest in female performance artists like Yoko Ono and Ana Mendieta, whose works challenge societal norms. It highlights the efforts of curators to bring attention to subversive feminist art in a contemporary context marked by rising misogyny and the rollback of women's rights. The piece reflects on how these artists addressed issues that remain relevant today.
- ▪Yoko Ono invited audiences to interact with her art by cutting her clothing, prompting reflections on audience agency.
- ▪Ana Mendieta created performance art that tested the boundaries of her body and identity.
- ▪Curators are now focused on reviving feminist performance art that has historically been overlooked.
Opening excerpt (first ~120 words) tap to expand
Decades ago, Yoko Ono invited an audience to use a pair of scissors to cut the clothing she wore, later telling a curator, “I wanted to see what they would take.” Ana Mendieta tested the boundaries of her own body against the world she inhabited, once creating a shallow grave for herself where her silhouette could still be seen, rising and falling with her breaths. Amanda Fortini considers the resurgent interest in female performance artists—Ono, Mendieta, Marina Abramović, Carolee Schneemann, and more—whose work “was not salable, collectible or tied to the market in any way.” Curators have made it their mission to rescue subversive feminist performance work from the purgatory where it’s long dwelled.
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Excerpt limited to ~120 words for fair-use compliance. The full article is at Longreads.
