Abstract
Tania Bruguera ranks among the foremost contemporary conceptual artists. Both in her life and in her art, she has defied and crossed borders and boundaries. This article intends to demonstrate the paradoxical nature of Bruguera's artistic enterprise: even as she adopts a post-modern stance, mostly through live performances, her work is deeply rooted in Cuba's indigenous traditions and painful past, as well as in its present-day life and politics. Breaking traditional boundaries between artistic media – painting, sculpture and body performance – Bruguera’s installations combine solid structures with ephemeral ones, while others are performances with the artist performing in front of an audience, requested to actively participate in the artwork. This article also discusses the changes introduced by the artist in the performances that took place in the US and in Europe, and concludes by discussing the impact of militant practices in contemporary performance art on audiences in our age of globalization.
Highlights
Tania Bruguera ranks among the foremost contemporary conceptual artists
This article intends to demonstrate the paradoxical nature of Bruguera’s artistic enterprise: even as she adopts a post-modern stance, mostly through live performances, her work is deeply rooted in Cuba's indigenous traditions and painful past, as well as in its presentday life and politics
Breaking traditional boundaries between artistic media – painting, sculpture and body performance – Bruguera's installations combine solid structures with ephemeral ones, while others are performances with the artist performing in front of an audience, requested to actively participate in the artwork
Summary
All of the significant art of today stems from Conceptual art This includes the art of installation, political, feminist, and socially directed art. 3 Bruguera’s very first performance was a reconstruction of Ana Mendieta’s “Blood Trace,” which the Cubanborn artist Mendieta first performed in Iowa in 1974. Dipping her forearms into a bucket of pig’s blood, Mendieta raised both hands above her head and dragged them to the floor, leaving a V-shaped stain. Bruguera performed a series of reenactments of the work of Ana Mendieta at Fototeca de Cuba’s exhibition “No por mucho madrugar” in Havana, beginning a ten-year project to recover Mendieta’s legacy from official policies aimed at erasing the cultural contributions of Cuban expatriates.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
