Vito Acconci

Biography

Vito Acconci (January 24, 1940 – April 27, 2017) was an American performance, video and installation artist, whose diverse practice eventually included sculpture, architectural design, and landscape design. His performance and video art was characterized by "existential unease," exhibitionism, discomfort, transgression and provocation, as well as wit and audacity, and often involved crossing boundaries such as public–private, consensual–nonconsensual, and real world–art world. His work is considered to have influenced artists including Laurie Anderson, Karen Finley, Bruce Nauman, and Tracey Emin, among others. Acconci was initially interested in radical poetry, creating 0 to 9 Magazine, but by the late 1960s he began creating Situationist-influenced performances in the street or for small audiences that explored the body and public space. Two of his most famous pieces were Following Piece (1969), in which he selected random passersby on New York City streets and followed them for as long as he was able, and Seedbed (1972), in which he claimed that he masturbated while under a temporary floor at the Sonnabend Gallery, as visitors walked above and heard him speaking. In the late-1970s, he turned to sculpture, architecture and design, greatly increasing the scale of his work, if not his art world profile. Over the next two decades he developed public artworks and parks, airport rest areas, artificial islands and other architectural projects that frequently embraced participation, change and playfulness. Notable works of this period include: Personal Island, designed for Zwolle, the Netherlands (1994); Walkways Through the Wall at the Wisconsin Center, in Milwaukee, WI (1998); and Murinsel, for Graz, Austria (2003). Retrospectives of Acconci's work have been organized by the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam (1978) and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago (1980), and his work is in numerous public collections, including those of the Museum of Modern Art and Whitney Museum of American Art. He has been recognized with fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts (1976, 1980, 1983, 1993), John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation (1979), and American Academy in Rome (1986).[6] In addition to his art and design work, Acconci taught at many higher learning institutions. Acconci died on April 27, 2017, in Manhattan at age 77.

(1971) Director

Acting

Year	Character	Movie/Tv
2016	Self	Burden 2016-04-16 Movie
2013	Himself	Revenge of the Mekons 2013-11-14 Movie
2009	Self	The Art of Time 2009-10-10 Movie
2008	N/A	Chelsea on the Rocks 2008-05-23 Movie
2006	Narrator	You're Going to Die! 2006-10-22 Movie
1999	Self	Steven Holl: The Body in Space 1999-02-22 Movie
1991	Swiss assassin	The Golden Boat 1991-06-22 Movie
1981	Himself	14 Americans: Directions of the 1970s 1981-09-01 Movie
	N/A	How to Fly 1981-01-01 Movie
1980	N/A	Journeys from Berlin/1971 1980-01-11 Movie
1977	Himself	The Red Tapes 1977-01-01 Movie
1974	Himself	My Word 1974-01-01 Movie
	Himself	Turn-On 1974-01-01 Movie
1973	Himself	Willoughby Sharp Videoviews Vito Acconci 1973-01-01 Movie
1972	N/A	Seedbed 1972-01-01 Movie
	Vito Acconci	Undertone 1972-01-01 Movie
1971	N/A	Pryings 1971-01-21 Movie
	Himself	Remote Control 1971-01-01 Movie
	Self	Centers 1971-01-01 Movie
	Himself	Conversions 1 1971-01-01 Movie
	Himself	Association Area 1971-01-01 Movie
	Himself	Claim Excerpts 1971-01-01 Movie
1970	Himself	Three Adaptation Studies 1970-01-01 Movie
	Self	Digging Piece 1970-01-01 Movie
	Self	Flour/Breath Piece 1970-01-01 Movie
	Self	Gargle/Spit Piece 1970-01-01 Movie
	Self	Two Takes Movie
Year	Character	Movie/Tv

Writing

Year	Role	Movie/Tv
2007	Writer	Seven Easy Pieces 2007-02-15 Movie
1974	Writer	My Word 1974-01-01 Movie
1972	Writer	Seedbed 1972-01-01 Movie
Year	Role	Movie/Tv

Directing

Year	Role	Movie/Tv
1977	Director	The Red Tapes 1977-01-01 Movie
1974	Director	Open Book 1974-01-01 Movie
	Director	My Word 1974-01-01 Movie
	Director	Turn-On 1974-01-01 Movie
	Director	Shoot 1974-01-01 Movie
	Director	Face of the Earth 1974-01-01 Movie
	Director	Full Circle 1974-01-01 Movie
1973	Director	Theme Song 1973-08-11 Movie
	Director	Face-Off 1973-01-01 Movie
	Director	Air Time 1973-01-01 Movie
	Director	Walk-Over 1973-01-01 Movie
	Director	Reception Room 1973-01-01 Movie
	Director	Visions of a Disappearance 1973-01-01 Movie
	Director	Recording Studio From Air Time 1973-01-01 Movie
	Director	Command Performance 1973-01-01 Movie
1972	Director	Undertone 1972-01-01 Movie
	Director	Seedbed 1972-01-01 Movie
	Director	Cross-Fronts 1972-01-01 Movie
	Director	Go Between 1972-01-01 Movie
	Director	Hand to Hand 1972-01-01 Movie
	Director	Anchors 1972-01-01 Movie
	Director	Face to Face 1972-01-01 Movie
1971	Director	Pryings 1971-01-21 Movie
	Director	Centers 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Two Track 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Conversions 1 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Claim Excerpts 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Remote Control 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Association Area 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Watch 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Directions 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Breath In (To) / Out (Of) 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Waterways (Burst; Storage) 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Training Ground 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Conversions 3 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Conversions 2 1971-01-01 Movie
	Director	Contacts 1971-01-01 Movie
1970	Director	Seeing Red 1970-12-01 Movie
	Director	Open-Close 1970-10-10 Movie
	Director	Openings 1970-07-15 Movie
	Director	See Through 1970-01-02 Movie
	Director	Applications 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Three Adaptation Studies 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Concentration/Contemplation Piece 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Corrections 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Three Frame Studies 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Filling Up Space 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Rubbings 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Two Cover Studies 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Lick 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Run Off 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Break-Through 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Three Relationship Studies 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Digging Piece 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Flour/Breath Piece 1970-01-01 Movie
	Director	Gargle/Spit Piece 1970-01-01 Movie
1969	Director	Three Attention Studies 1969-01-01 Movie
	Director	Clouds Movie
	Director	Two Takes Movie
Year	Role	Movie/Tv