Utilizing a range of media and humor—and with a nod to the legendary earth works and endurance projects of the 1970s—Six Actions for New York City consisted of an international group of performers and young artists, who created provocative pedestrian projects. Together, the artists sought to enlivened the city by showcasing art practices that remain inherently experimental and challenging.
Adrian Piper, for one, initiated an open call for volunteers to imprint the text “Everything will be taken away” on their foreheads in henna for two weeks. The four-man group Gelitin simply dug a giant hole in the beach on Coney Island for seven days, and Jonathan Monk restaged a new version of Daniel Buren’s 1975 performance Seven Ballets In Manhattan. Hamish Fulton, meanwhile, created a “walk”—his first in New York City—and Javier Tellez produced a film with seven blind New Yorkers and an elephant. Spartacus Chetwynd, with a team of four others from England, developed improvisational interventions in response to the architecture throughout the city and Coney Island.
Multiple Artists
Six Actions for New York City
Multiple Locations
2007
