Tehching Hsieh
Encyclopedia
Tehching Hsieh (謝德慶; born 1950, Nanjhou, Pingtung County
, Taiwan
) is a noted New York City
-based performance artist; he has been called a “master” by fellow performance artist, Marina Abramović
.
In 2009, the Museum of Modern Art
(MoMA) in New York exhibited a collection documenting his performance. The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
in New York also showed one of his works in 2009 as part of its retrospective exhibition, "The Third Mind: American Artists Contemplate Asia: 1860-1989."
Documentation of this piece was exhibited at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 2009, using film, punch cards and photographs.
This work was the first of Hsieh's ever to be displayed in the UK at the Liverpool Biennial
in 2010
spent one year between 4 July 1983 and 4 July 1984 tied to each other with an 8 feet (2.4 m) rope. They had to stay in a same room while not allowed to touch each other until the end of the one year period. Both of them shaved their hair in the beginning of the year, and the performance was notarized initially by Paul Grassfield and later by Pauline Oliveros
.
This plan began on his 36th birthday, December 31, 1986, and lasted until his 49th birthday, December 31, 1999.
At the end, on January 1, 2000 he issued his concluding report, “I kept myself alive. I passed the December 31st, 1999.” The report consisted of cutout letters pasted onto a single sheet of paper.
According to critic Steve Shaviro, Hsieh's work can be seen as being about imprisonment, solitude, work, time, homelessness, exposure, marriage/human relations, and the way in which art and life are related. Hsieh states his work is about "wasting time and freethinking"
in 2008.
Pingtung County
Pingtung County is a county in Southern Taiwan. Pingtung County is officially administered as a county of the Republic of China . The oldest national park in Taiwan, Kenting National Park, was established in Pingtung County in 1984...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
) is a noted New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
-based performance artist; he has been called a “master” by fellow performance artist, Marina Abramović
Marina Abramovic
Marina Abramović is a Belgrade-born New York-based Serbian performance artist who began her career in the early 1970s. Active for over three decades, she has recently begun to describe herself as the “grandmother of performance art.” Abramović's work explores the relationship between performer and...
.
Early life
Tehching Hsieh dropped out from high school and started creating art in the form of paintings; he went on to create several performance pieces after finishing his three years of compulsory military service in Taiwan. In 1974, Hsieh jumped ship to a pier of the Delaware River, near Philadelphia, and made a living as a dishwasher and cleaner during his first four years in New York. From 1978–1986, Hsieh accomplished five One Year Performances; from 1986–1999, he worked on what he called his "Thirteen-Year Plan". On 1 January 2000, in his report to the public, Tehching Hsieh announced that he has kept himself alive. He stopped making art since then.In 2009, the Museum of Modern Art
Museum of Modern Art
The Museum of Modern Art is an art museum in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, on 53rd Street, between Fifth and Sixth Avenues. It has been important in developing and collecting modernist art, and is often identified as the most influential museum of modern art in the world...
(MoMA) in New York exhibited a collection documenting his performance. The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum
The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum is a well-known museum located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City, United States. It is the permanent home to a renowned collection of Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, early Modern, and contemporary art and also features special exhibitions...
in New York also showed one of his works in 2009 as part of its retrospective exhibition, "The Third Mind: American Artists Contemplate Asia: 1860-1989."
Works
He is most known for six durational performance pieces completed between 1978 and 2000.One Year Performance 1978–1979 (Cage Piece)
In this performance, which lasted from September 29, 1978 through September 30, 1979, the artist locked himself in a 11′6″ × 9′ × 8' wooden cage, furnished only with a wash basin, lights, a pail, and a single bed. During the year, he was not allowed to talk, to read, to write, or to listen to radio and TV. A lawyer, Robert Projansky, notarized the entire process and made sure the artist never left the cage during that one year. A friend came daily to deliver food, remove the artist's waste, and take a single photograph to document the project. In addition, this performance was open to be viewed once or twice a month from 11am to 5pm.One Year Performance 1980–1981 (Time Clock Piece)
For one year, from April 11, 1980 through April 11, 1981, Hsieh punched a time clock every hour on the hour. Each time he punched the clock, he took a single picture of himself, which together yield a 6 minute movie. He shaved his head before the piece, so his growing hair reflects the passage of time.Documentation of this piece was exhibited at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 2009, using film, punch cards and photographs.
This work was the first of Hsieh's ever to be displayed in the UK at the Liverpool Biennial
Liverpool Biennial
Liverpool Biennial is a British international festival of contemporary art held in Liverpool. The festival comprises the International Exhibition, the John Moores Painting Prize, the Bloomberg New Contemporaries Exhibition and the Independents Biennial....
in 2010
One Year Performance 1981–1982 (Outdoor Piece)
In his third one year performance piece, from September 26, 1981 through September 26, 1982, Hsieh spent one year outside, not entering buildings or shelter of any sort, including cars, trains, airplanes, boats, or tents. He moved around New York City with a packbag and a sleeping bag.Art / Life: One Year Performance 1983-1984 (Rope Piece)
In this performance, Hsieh and Linda MontanoLinda Montano
Linda Mary Montano is a central figure in contemporary performance art. She was raised in a devoutly Roman Catholic household, partly Irish and partly Italian, that was surrounded by artistic activity...
spent one year between 4 July 1983 and 4 July 1984 tied to each other with an 8 feet (2.4 m) rope. They had to stay in a same room while not allowed to touch each other until the end of the one year period. Both of them shaved their hair in the beginning of the year, and the performance was notarized initially by Paul Grassfield and later by Pauline Oliveros
Pauline Oliveros
Pauline Oliveros is an American accordionist and composer who is a central figure in the development of post-war electronic art music....
.
One Year Performance 1985–1986 (No Art Piece)
For one year, Hsieh did no art, spoke no art, saw no art, read no art, and did not enter any museum or gallery.Tehching Hsieh 1986–1999 (Thirteen Year Plan)
At the beginning of this epic piece, Hsieh declared, “Will make Art during this time. Will not show it publicly.”This plan began on his 36th birthday, December 31, 1986, and lasted until his 49th birthday, December 31, 1999.
At the end, on January 1, 2000 he issued his concluding report, “I kept myself alive. I passed the December 31st, 1999.” The report consisted of cutout letters pasted onto a single sheet of paper.
Philosophy
His pieces are not feats of stamina nor (consciously at least) motivated by a desire to suffer (though they have been described as ordeals), but rather are explorations of time and of struggle.According to critic Steve Shaviro, Hsieh's work can be seen as being about imprisonment, solitude, work, time, homelessness, exposure, marriage/human relations, and the way in which art and life are related. Hsieh states his work is about "wasting time and freethinking"
Awards
Hsieh received a Hoi Fellows Grant from the arts organization United States ArtistsUnited States Artists
United States Artists is an independent nonprofit and nongovernmental philanthropic organization based in Los Angeles, California and dedicated to supporting the work of living American artists by the granting of cash awards, called USA Fellowships...
in 2008.
Images
External links
- Video interview in the Art Newspaper with Jean Wainwright, 7 April 2009: http://www.theartnewspaper.tv/content.php?vid=503
- Interview with Robert Ayers, April 2009: http://www.askyfilledwithshootingstars.com/wordpress/?p=812
- "Body of Art" audio slideshow on BBC radio 4: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8089933.stm