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Slought Foundation, a non-profit organization rethinking contemporary art, presents Hermann Nitsch / Die Aktionen: 1962-2003, a retrospective exhibition of pioneering Viennese Actionist Hermann Nitsch, curated by Osvaldo Romberg, featuring documentary videos of his performances since 1962. Hermann Nitsch will be joining us from Vienna especially for the opening. Nitsch is known for his ritualistic actions, often combining fake crucifixion with the disemboweling of lambs and other animals. In the late 50s Hermann Nitsch developed the concept of the "Orgien Mysterien Theater" (Theatre of Orgies and Mysteries) a total work of art appealing to all senses, celebratory and life-affirming. Lorand Hegyi, director of Le Musée d'Art Moderne de Saint-Etienne, will give an introductory talk at the exhibition opening on Saturday, February 19th at 6:30pm. Information on events organized in conjunction with the exhibition, including Hal Foster and Brigid Doherty on body and performance, and Branka Arsic and Gregg Lambert on pain and fashion, is available online in the upcoming calendar. A media kit is available above as a PDF download (100k), and includes Osvaldo Romberg's curatorial essay "Redemption through Blood," as well as selected passages from a 2003 interview with Hermann Nitsch.
 Newspaper coverage: Philadelphia Inquirer (02/27/05) | Philadelphia Weekly (02/16/05)
"I also believe that, with regard to both the tragic aspect of suffering and instants of extreme ecstasy and affirmation of life, art needs to have a sense of sacred solemnity. [...] We propagated a very aggressive type of art, not a cozy art but an art that displayed tremendous power and intensity." -- Hermann Nitsch
"A psychoanalytically-oriented dramaturgy allows the Dionysian to burst forth from within us. Suppressed areas of inner impulses are made visible. The actions with flesh, blood and slaughtered animals plumb the collective areas of our unconscious minds. The paramount aim and purpose of the festival is a profound affirmation of our existence, our life and our creation. The mysticism of being leads to a permanent festival of life. [...] All are invited to drink. A mass intoxication is imperative, an all-embracing intoxication of the participants is ordained, unrestrained drinking takes place, day and night, in vineyards and cellars. Slaughter of a pig. GRAPES, FRUIT and TOMATOES, ANIMAL LUNGS, FLESH and INTESTINES are trampled on in ecstasy. People trample in SLAUGHTERED ANIMAL CARCASSES FILLED WITH INTESTINES, in troughs full of blood and wine. Extreme noise from the orchestras. Slaughtering of the bull, slaughtering of two pigs. Disembowelment." -- Nitsch, Das Orgien Mysterien Theater
Read the full curatorial essay
Hermann Nitsch (born 1938) is an Austrian performance artist and a forerunner of Wiener Aktionismus (Viennese Actionism, or Performance art). Nitsch is known for his ritualistic performance actions, often combining fake crucifixion with the disemboweling of lambs and other animals. In the late 50s Hermann Nitsch developed the concept of the "Orgien Mysterien Theater" (Theatre of Orgies and Mysteries) a total work of art appealing to all senses, celebratory and life-affirming. Drawing on religion, philosophy and psychology, he has composed numerous theoretical writings, compositions and scores to accompany over 100 realized action performances between the years of 1962 and 1998. In 1998, Nitsch staged his 100th performance (named the 6-Day Play after its length) which took place at Schloss Prinzendorf, his castle in Austria.
(Two audio interviews with Hermann Nitsch are available online here: http://www.ubu.com/sound/nitsch.html)
Media files on the Slought.org website are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.5 License. You are free to copy, distribute, display, and perform the work under the following conditions: a) Attribution. You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor; b) Noncommercial. You may not use this work for commercial purposes; c) No Derivative Works. You may not alter, transform, or build upon this work. For any reuse or distribution, you must make clear to others the license terms of this work. Any of these conditions can be waived if you get permission from the copyright holder.
To Cite this Page using MLA Style:
Hermann Nitsch. "Die Aktionen: 1962-2003." Slought Foundation Online Content.
[19 February 2005;
Accessed 6 January 2009]. <http://slought.org/content/11274/>.
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This program was made possible in part through the generous sponsorship of Mike Weiss Gallery (NY representative), and Heike Curtze (Austrian representative)
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