Adrian Piper's MoMA Retrospective Confronts Decades of Institutional Exclusion
On the sixth floor of MoMA, the largest exhibition area dedicated to a living artist, Adrian Piper's retrospective titled 'A Synthesis of Intuitions 1965-2016' is on display. Since 2005, Piper, an American artist and philosopher residing in Berlin, has not been back to the U.S. due to her inclusion on a watch list for 'suspicious travelers' since 2006. The exhibition, which runs until July 22, 2018, features over fifty years of her politically motivated artwork, influenced by Sol LeWitt. Among the highlighted works are Nine Part Floating Square (1967) and Black Box/White Box (1992), which confront issues of identity and the Rodney King riots. The showcase concludes with a 2007 video of Piper dancing in Berlin, emphasizing her connection to physicality and space.
Key facts
- Adrian Piper has lived in Berlin since 2005 and has not entered the U.S. since 2006 due to a watch list designation.
- The MoMA retrospective covers 1965-2016 and occupies the entire sixth floor, the largest exhibition space given to a living artist at the museum.
- The exhibition runs through July 22, 2018.
- Piper's early work was influenced by Sol LeWitt and New York Conceptualism of the 1960s.
- In 1973, she created 'The Mythic Being,' a performative black male alter ego explored in video and street performances.
- Black Box/White Box (1992) is an immersive installation addressing the Rodney King incident and its aftermath.
- Piper's work addresses intersectional disparities through varied mediums including performance, collage, drawing, and installation.
- The retrospective highlights her resistance to categorization and confrontational style as factors in past institutional neglect.
Entities
Artists
- Adrian Piper
- Sol LeWitt
Institutions
- MoMA
- ArtReview
- Transportation Security Administration
Locations
- New York
- United States
- Berlin
- Germany
- Los Angeles
- Cambodia