Anne Wagner on Vito Acconci

Cornerstone lecture: 'Acconci and the Senses'

19 Mar 2009
19 Mar 2009

In the lecture Acconci and the Senses, Anne Wagner looks at the work of Vito Acconci and reveals insights into the understanding of the sensory in relation to the development of new media. On 19 March 2009 at Witte de With in Rotterdam.

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Vito Acconci, "Home Entertainment Center (green)", 1991. Image taken from Barnaby's blog . -

According to Marshall McLuhan, understanding media means grasping that they force our sensory equipment to adapt to technological change. The process may be painful, but it is unavoidable nevertheless. To Acconci, however, this was less apparent. His performances in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s offer small dramas of the body’s failure to adjust. His narratives rehearse the gamut of his fears. As we now experience the recent stages of media transformations, it is worth returning to Acconci’s fears and numbness, as his adaptive failures may hold valuable insights about sensory experience in the present day.

Time: 7 – 8.30 p.m.
Location: Witte de With’s Auditorium
Entrance: €10,- (reduced price €7,-)
Language: English
//Reservations: reservations@wdw.nl//
Also visit the Witte de With website.