Photo^ (left):©Merce^ Cunningham^Trust,^full^ credits^ listed^ on^ page^57 /Photo^ (right):^ Collection^ of^ Walker^Art^ Center,^ full^ credits^ listedonpage57performance is, by nature,
fluid – mutable and slippery. It
lives in the beat of the passing
moment, bound by context,
expression, and shared experi-
ence. A given performance is
marked by numerous factors
beyond the work itself: the vibe
of the venue, the arrangement
of the set, the fit and feel of the
costumes, the passing mood
of individual performers, and
the audience’s response (or
lack thereof). Each iteration is
unique, impossible to replicate.
Like a river, you can never
step into the same perfor-
mance twice.
But there are enduring
elements. When the curtain
comes down and performers
and audience disperse, the
sets, costumes, and archival
materials – from staging notes
to reviews – remain. Perfor-
mances may be ephemeral,
but the objects surrounding
them persist, albeit as entangled
creations – at once tied to, yet
separate from, their purpose
onstage. Those objects bear
the marks of the hands that
made them: the small armies
of craftspeople behind the
scenes who fashion bespoke
costumes, build cleverly engi-
neered sets, and create the
props that give tangible depth
and dimension to the otherwise
gossamer magic of performance.
There are few more compel-
ling examples of the confluence
of craft, object, and performance
than the Merce Cunningham
Dance Company. A hugely
influential figure in 20th-
century art and performance,
Cunningham was a prolific
performer and choreographer,
creating more than 150 dance
works over seven decades.
An innovator in form and tech-
nique, he was renowned for
his experiments with chance-
inspired movement.
Beginning in the 1940s,
Cunningham and composer
John Cage, his longtime artistic
and life partner, conceived of
a new kind of interdisciplinary
collaboration in performance.
They invited painters, sculp-
tors, designers, and composers
of the time to create décor,
costumes, and sound for his
performances. Many of his
collab orators were themselves
highly regarded: artists Marcel
Duchamp, Robert Rauschen-
berg, Jasper Johns, Frank Stella,
and Andy Warhol; fashion
designer Rei Kawakubo; com-
poser David Tudor; filmmaker
Charles Atlas; and many others.
Though these elements
all appeared in Cunningham’sMerce Cunningham
(left) is regarded as
one of the most influen-
tial choreographers of
the 20th century. He’s
also renowned for
his cross-disciplinary
collaborations with lead-
ing avant-garde painters
and sculptors, such as
Robert Rauschenberg,
who made the costumes
and backdrop for
Interscape (2000, right).52 american craft aug/sept 19