Estimations

Vito AcconciWW-1970-101677

1970·Nine gelatin silver prints, with chalk·114.3 × 266.7 cm (45 × 105 in.)

<p>Transitioning from his work as a poet to visual art, from 1969 to 1970, Vito Acconci created a series of over 20 works combining photography and text that would, in his own words, “get myself off the page and into real space. These photographic pieces were ways to, literally, throw myself into my environment.” In both urban and natural landscapes, Acconci used a set of self-imposed instructions that described how to perform and document specific kinds of activities. In <em>Estimations</em>, his instructions and the results are listed along with the photographs. Here the artist explored the deceptive differences between reality, appearance, and representation. Acconci assembled this work in its present format 17 years after he captured the images.</p>

Catalogue

Year: 1970
Medium: Nine gelatin silver prints, with chalk
Dimensions: 114.3 × 266.7 cm (45 × 105 in.)
Collection: Art Institute of Chicago
Artist: Vito Acconci

Artist

Vito Acconci

Installation

Vito Acconci was an American performance, video and installation artist, whose diverse practice eventually included sculpture, architectural design, and landscape design. His performance and video art was characterized by "existential unease," exhibitionism, discomfort, transgression and provocation, as well as wit and audacity, and often involved crossing boundaries such as public–private, consensual–nonconsensual, and real world–art world. His work is considered to have influenced artists including Laurie Anderson, Karen Finley, Bruce Nauman, and Tracey Emin, among others.

New York, NY, USA

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