New york: Taiwanese-American performance artist Hsieh Teh-ching has inaugurated a significant two-year retrospective at Dia Beacon, New York, featuring six of his most influential works. This includes five iconic one-year performances and a 13-year project being publicly showcased for the first time.
According to Focus Taiwan, the exhibition, titled “Tehching Hsieh: Lifeworks 1978-1999,” presents photographs and documents from Hsieh’s radical long-duration performances. Dia Beacon, part of the Dia Art Foundation, is situated along the Hudson River in Beacon, New York.
The exhibition revisits his “One Year Performances,” starting with Cage Piece (1978-1979), where Hsieh spent a year confined to a locked cage. In Time Clock Piece (1980-1981), he punched a time clock every hour around the clock. Outdoor Piece (1981-1982) documented a year of living outside without shelter.
Rope Piece (1983-1984) involved Hsieh and fellow artist Linda Montano being tied together for a year without touching. No Art Piece (1985-1986) chronicled a year where he refrained from creating, discussing, or even viewing art.
The centerpiece, “Thirteen Year Plan” (1986-1999), is his longest project. Hsieh announced on his 36th birthday that he would “make art” for 13 years in secrecy. The work was completed in 1999 and was revealed to the public for the first time at this exhibition.
The opening event attracted over 200 visitors and included a conversation featuring Hsieh, Montano, Dia Deputy Director Humberto Moro, and guest curator Adrian Heathfield.
Dia Director Jessica Morgan expressed gratitude for Hsieh’s contributions, which also encompass 11 additional works to be gifted in 2024.
Born in Pingtung County’s Nanzhou Township, Hsieh was one of 15 children. He left high school to pursue painting, switched to performance art following military service, and relocated to the United States in 1974. Hsieh commenced his One Year Performances in 1978, concluding his artistic experiments with the Thirteen Year Plan in 1999.
