The ZKM mourns the loss of a friend and great artist
Ulay died at the age of 76
Born in Solingen in 1943, Frank Uwe Laysiepen, better known as Ulay, is a central figure in performance art.
Starting with photography, he founded Performance for Photography with Jürgen Klauke in the early 1970s, in which gender and identity issues already played an important role. The medium of the body in the dimensions of space and time consequently moved into focus, which he developed into a new art movement in the »relational works« together with Marina Abramović. Together they relativized the European concept of art and expanded it to include ethnological and anthropological »districts of people« (Elias Canetti).
His works, as well as those created in collaboration with his long-time partner Marina Abramović, can be found in numerous collections of important art institutions worldwide: for example, in the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, the Centre Pompidou Paris or the Museum of Modern Art New York. Many of his works are part of the ZKM Collection.
From 1999 to 2004, Ulay was Professor of Performance at the HfG | Staatliche Hochschule für Gestaltung Karlsruhe, and many of his works have been shown in various exhibitions at the ZKM. In recent years, Ulay has increasingly devoted himself to projects and artistic initiatives to raise awareness of the element of water. He has lived and worked in Amsterdam, the Netherlands and Slovenia.
In 2014, the artist presented his publication »Whispers: Ulay on Ulay« at ZKM in a conversation with Peter Weibel. His films »Ulay - Project Cancer« and »Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present« were subsequently shown.
Ulay at ZKM
In 2014, the artist presented his publication »Whispers: Ulay on Ulay« at ZKM in a conversation with Peter Weibel.
His films »Ulay - Project Cancer« and »Marina Abramović: The Artist Is Present« were subsequently shown.
Ulay as guest at the ZKM
Ulay died in Ljubljana, Slovenia, on Monday night at the age of 76.
02.03.2020