Body art, performance, "Aktionism", Happenings: these are all names for theany late 20th century art forms that have used the artist's own body as theubject and object of the artwork itself. Whether acting out the gestures ofainting (Jackson Pollock, Yves Klein, the Gutai group); voguing for theamera (Hannah Wilke, Mariko Mori); subjecting oneself to acts of violenceChris Burden, Gunter Brus, Gina Pane); displaying acts of athletic prowessnd courage (Matthew Barney, Marina Abramovic); or even masturbating underhe gallery floor (Vito Acconci), artists since the late 1950s havencreasingly used their bodies to subvert, shock and politicise contemporaryrt.;Images of these often extreme, highly unconventional artwork withommentary are accompanied by documents which chart the ideas, their criticaleception and the broader philosophical and cultural context which framedhem. The introductory survey, by noted expert Amelia Jones, examineshronologically the key artists and works within the social history of theirimes.

Amelia Jones is Professor of Art History at the University of California, Riverside, Los Angeles.