LAURIE ANDERSON

LAURIE ANDERSON

Brief Biographical Information:

- Born in Chicago, IL 1947

- Graduated from Barnard: Art History degree

- MFA in sculpture from Columbia University

- Spent the 1970s working as an art instructor and critic for various magazines, and illustrating children’s books

- She has collaborated with visual artists (such as Robert Rauschenberg) and choreographers (Trisha Brown) in order to create elaborate performances

Performance Art:

Her art incorporates a variety of media: music, video, storytelling, projected imagery, sculpture, etc.

- “Duets on Ice” (1970s): she played the violin along with a recording, while wearing ice skates that were no longer functional, because the blades were frozen in a solid block of ice. She continued playing until the blocks of ice had completely melted.

- “United States I-IV” (1983): combined music, photography, film, drawings, and animation with text. 78 segments organized into four parts: Transportation, Politics, Money, and Love.

- “The Nerve Bible” (1995): based on the book of her work. She travelled on a tour in which she read excerpts from her book while incorporating music, comedy, illusion, dance, film, songs, and a simulated tornado into her performance.

- “Songs and Stories from Moby Dick” (1999): A multimedia, musical performance of the book.

- “The End of the Moon” (2004): she was appointed the first artist-in-residence of NASA.

Music & Film:

- “It’s not the Bullet that Kills you – It’s the Hole” (1977)

- “O Superman” (1981): half-sung, half-spoken --- surprisingly successfully, propelled her into the music world. It is in part a cover of a song from Le Cid, but very minimalist. See video below:

- She has released seven albums for Warner Bros.

- Short film: Hidden Inside Mountains --- she received a great deal of acclaim for this project

Books:

- She has published six books

Inventions:

- Tape-bow violin (1977): uses recorded magnetic tape in place of the traditional hair on a bow, so that recordings can be manipulated with the playing of her violin

- Talking stick (1999-2000): 6-foot long MIDI controller: a wireless instrument that can access and replicate any sound

Comments:

- I chose Laurie Anderson, despite being relatively unfamiliar with her art, because I recognized her name (I own some of her music, and was unsure whether the artist and the musician were the same person). I also knew that Lou Reed was married to a Laurie Anderson, but again, was unsure whether this artist was the same. Turns out, they are!

- It is interesting that her art is that of performance, since she has had a long interest in music, and performance art really allows the art to penetrate more than one sense (performance art is typically not simply a visual experience).