Simone Forti. Thinking with the Body

“I am interested in what we know about things through our bodies,” says Simone Forti (1935 Florence, IT–since 1938 Los Angeles, US) of her work. Although she is considered a key figure in postmodern dance and Minimalism, she prefers the term “movement artist”. Simone Forti’s work as an artist, choreographer, dancer, and writer is pioneering.

This publication was published on the occasion of the retrospective by Simone Forti at the Museum der Moderne Salzburg (18 July–9 November 2014). It offers the first extensive presentation of this influential artist’s diverse work and features numerous illustrations and essays by prominent art historians and fellow artists. Based on extensive research, a comprehensive history of the exhibitions and performances as well as a biography and bibliography on Simone Forti are published in this volume for the first time.

Simone Forti’s work is predominantly dedicated to experimentation and improvisation. Among her well-known works are the Dance Constructions (1960/61); these minimal objects, made of plywood and rope, were first performed in Yoko Ono’s loft in New York. This publication also addresses her inventive work with holograms, drawing series, sound works and video. Forti’s examination of the relationship between object and body in the interplay with mental processes and language is an important contribution to the interface between sculpture and performance. During the late 1960s Forti, who at the time lived in Rome near the zoo, began developing performances based on the movements of the animals. In News Animations, her most recent works, Forti examines how dance can reflect current events.