NO SHOW MUSEUM

2nd

i Henry Flynt

picket MOMA, 1962

picket Lincoln Center, 1963

From Culture to Veramusment, 1963

Show in advance of its existence, 1989

picket MOMA, 1962

* In 1940 in Greensboro, United States.

American artist, philosopher

Known for: Anti-art pamphlets, essays and political performance art (1963)

Art historical context: Institutional critique, Anti-Art, Minimal Art / Music, Fluxus, Concept Art

Exhibited works

picket MOMA, 1963. 2nd \| B		Anti-art performance/demonstration with Tony Conrad and Jack Smith, February 27, 1963 at MoMA, New York. Photo by Tony Conrad.

picket Lincoln Center, 1963. 2nd \| B		Anti-art performance/demonstration with Tony Conrad and Jack Smith, 27 February 1963 at Lincoln Center, New York. Photo by Jack Smith

From Culture to Veramusment, 1963. 2nd \| B		Lecture-performance on 28 February 1963 in Walter De Maria's Loft in New York (Photo by Diane Wakoski) Flynt recited his text From Culture to Veramusment while standing behind a desk, under a portrait of the poet Vladimir Mayakovsky and next to signs with the following anti-art slogans: "DEMOLISH LINCOLN CENTER," "DEMOLISH SERIOUS CULTURE" and "NO MORE ART." Flynt, who described himself as a cognitive nihilist, directed his furious criticism against bourgeois and capitalist museum art. He campaigned for non-institutional forms of engagement and entertainment that break with the aesthetic norms of the art industry, which are of no commercial use and are performed by outcasts and nerds who defy the conventions and constraints of bourgeois society. He calls this approach "veramusment," a concept that anticipates the punk movement.

Show in advance of its existence. 1989 2nd \| B		"The contents of the exhibition space of Fondazione Mudima, Milano, on Saturday, 10 June 1989, were a show of mine. The show occurred before I constituted it, when no one knew it was occurring. The occurrence of the show is documented by photos which I took in Mudima on 10 June 1989. I had gone to Mudima to talk with Gino Di Maggio about future events. I photographed the interior as Gino showed me around the building--before the show existed. An art exhibit exists if a realized occurrence fulfills the declared intention of an art exhibit. With respect to "Show in Advance of Its Existence," the intention is declared after the occurrence in time and space. The show will officially exist when the poster, announcement, and this explanation are released. I communicated to Gino Di Maggio on December 3, 1990 [sic!] that I considered the photos to document a show which had occurred at the time the photos were taken--unknown to everybody. The show is tied to that visit to Mudima and cannot be transferred. Gino and his associates did not become visitors to the show until Gino accepted the show after my letter of December 1990, even though they were materially present on June 10, 1989. The show occurred before Mudima opened. It is Mudima's zeroth show. As shown in the photos, the show included packaged art, by other artists, stored temporarily on the floor. I do not know what was in the packages or who made it. I assume(d) sponsorship of art unknown to me--art which was not at the time performing its intended function (being in storage)." (Henry Flynt, 1991)

Links Henryflynt.org \| Further informations 1 \| 2 \| 3 \| 4 \| 5 \| 6 \| 7 \| 8 \| 9 \| 10 Credits All reproductions © Henry Flynt

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1st

A

B

The Art of Absence

The Art of The Imperceptible, The Unseen, and The Hidden

The Art of Minimalism

GF

A

B

The Art of Minimalism

The Art of Omission

The Art of Saying Nothing

BF

A

B

The Art of Saying Nothing

The Art of Pure Imagination

picket MOMA, 1963. 2nd \| B		Anti-art performance/demonstration with Tony Conrad and Jack Smith, February 27, 1963 at MoMA, New York. Photo by Tony Conrad.

picket Lincoln Center, 1963. 2nd \| B		Anti-art performance/demonstration with Tony Conrad and Jack Smith, 27 February 1963 at Lincoln Center, New York. Photo by Jack Smith

From Culture to Veramusment, 1963. 2nd \| B		Lecture-performance on 28 February 1963 in Walter De Maria's Loft in New York (Photo by Diane Wakoski) Flynt recited his text From Culture to Veramusment while standing behind a desk, under a portrait of the poet Vladimir Mayakovsky and next to signs with the following anti-art slogans: "DEMOLISH LINCOLN CENTER," "DEMOLISH SERIOUS CULTURE" and "NO MORE ART." Flynt, who described himself as a cognitive nihilist, directed his furious criticism against bourgeois and capitalist museum art. He campaigned for non-institutional forms of engagement and entertainment that break with the aesthetic norms of the art industry, which are of no commercial use and are performed by outcasts and nerds who defy the conventions and constraints of bourgeois society. He calls this approach "veramusment," a concept that anticipates the punk movement.

Show in advance of its existence. 1989 2nd \| B		"The contents of the exhibition space of Fondazione Mudima, Milano, on Saturday, 10 June 1989, were a show of mine. The show occurred before I constituted it, when no one knew it was occurring. The occurrence of the show is documented by photos which I took in Mudima on 10 June 1989. I had gone to Mudima to talk with Gino Di Maggio about future events. I photographed the interior as Gino showed me around the building--before the show existed. An art exhibit exists if a realized occurrence fulfills the declared intention of an art exhibit. With respect to "Show in Advance of Its Existence," the intention is declared after the occurrence in time and space. The show will officially exist when the poster, announcement, and this explanation are released. I communicated to Gino Di Maggio on December 3, 1990 [sic!] that I considered the photos to document a show which had occurred at the time the photos were taken--unknown to everybody. The show is tied to that visit to Mudima and cannot be transferred. Gino and his associates did not become visitors to the show until Gino accepted the show after my letter of December 1990, even though they were materially present on June 10, 1989. The show occurred before Mudima opened. It is Mudima's zeroth show. As shown in the photos, the show included packaged art, by other artists, stored temporarily on the floor. I do not know what was in the packages or who made it. I assume(d) sponsorship of art unknown to me--art which was not at the time performing its intended function (being in storage)." (Henry Flynt, 1991)

Links Henryflynt.org \| Further informations 1 \| 2 \| 3 \| 4 \| 5 \| 6 \| 7 \| 8 \| 9 \| 10 Credits All reproductions © Henry Flynt