I. Introduction
The human figure has been a source of artistic inspiration for millennia. From carved stone sculptures to self-mutilation, the versatility of the body and the implications of its use have not ceased to fascinate artists and viewers alike. The twentieth century witnessed a profound shift in the relationship between artists and the body. Documentation of the private undertakings of the Abstract Expressionists during the 1950s led to the creation of the term ‘action painters’, which consequently gave rise to the notion of the performance as central to, and often more important than, the finished material product.[1]
A variety of terms emerged to denote the different techniques and ideologies of works focused on performance, yet by the 1970s these were all grouped under a single category: performance art.[2] A subset of performance art, in which the artist’s body is used as the primary medium, was labelled ‘body art’. Art critic and co-founder of Avalanche magazine, Willoughby Sharp, first introduced the term. Sharp defined body art in 1970 as art in which the body is both the “subject and object of the work.”[3] Artists belonging to this movement manipulate their bodies in private or public settings and document the events through photography or video.[4] The results are often powerful statements that demand concentrated attention and invite social and personal introspection.
This essay examines the use of violence toward the body as a means of expressing ideologies as exemplified in the works of Ana Mendieta and Chris Burden. By juxtaposing the works of these two artists, this essay will assess the use of actual violence and implied violence under three criteria: social critique, the abject and gender.
The human figure has been a source of artistic inspiration for millennia. From carved stone sculptures to self-mutilation, the versatility of the body and the implications of its use have not ceased to fascinate artists and viewers alike. The twentieth century witnessed a profound shift in the relationship between artists and the body. Documentation of the private undertakings of the Abstract Expressionists during the 1950s led to the creation of the term ‘action painters’, which consequently gave rise to the notion of the performance as central to, and often more important than, the finished material product.[1]
A variety of terms emerged to denote the different techniques and ideologies of works focused on performance, yet by the 1970s these were all grouped under a single category: performance art.[2] A subset of performance art, in which the artist’s body is used as the primary medium, was labelled ‘body art’. Art critic and co-founder of Avalanche magazine, Willoughby Sharp, first introduced the term. Sharp defined body art in 1970 as art in which the body is both the “subject and object of the work.”[3] Artists belonging to this movement manipulate their bodies in private or public settings and document the events through photography or video.[4] The results are often powerful statements that demand concentrated attention and invite social and personal introspection.
This essay examines the use of violence toward the body as a means of expressing ideologies as exemplified in the works of Ana Mendieta and Chris Burden. By juxtaposing the works of these two artists, this essay will assess the use of actual violence and implied violence under three criteria: social critique, the abject and gender.