Performance Art

An updated edition of the pioneering study in the acclaimed World of Art series, this classic book surveys a full century of performance art, from the Futurist manifesto of 1909 through the second decade of the new millennium.

The standard reference since its first publication in 1979, Performance Art continues its authoritative chronicling of one of the most important art forms to emerge in modern times. Art historian and curator RoseLee Goldberg has updated her magnum opus to reflect the current state of performance in an age where digital and web technologies are becoming increasingly dominant, as she shows how a medium once used in sporadic bursts of artistic dissent has become a worldwide phenomenon.

Performance is now the medium of choice for many creatives entering the global conversation of art and culture. As the medium has developed across Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas it has become one of the most popular art forms for articulating "difference," whether dealing with issues of identity, politics, race, or historical background. Marina Abramovic, Matthew Barney, Sanford Biggers, Tania Bruguera, Patty Chang, Rashid Johnson, Autumn Knight, Pierre Huyghe, and Jacolby Satterwhite are among the many new and established artists whose work can now be seen in the context of other innovators in the field from the Futurists and Dadaists to Yves Klein and Laurie Anderson. Goldberg explores contemporary artists' approaches to politics, tradition, social engagement, and the art world itself, while evaluating the changing status of performance.

This revised edition includes an updated foreword, an expanded reading list, and a new chapter outlining developments in the second decade of the twenty-first century in the fields of dance, architecture, technology, and virtual performance.