Manchester University Press Unlimited Action: The Performance of Extremity in the 1970s (Theatre: Theory – Practice – Performance)

Unlimited action concerns the limits imposed upon art and life, and the means by which they were exceeded or challenged by performance art in the 1970s. Its author argues that through a series of performance actions, performance art reshaped aesthetics and the practice of art by way of performances that seem gratuitous, odd, illegible or unwarranted; which concede too much pain or pleasure, require too little skill, or disclose a surfeit of sex, infamy, cruelty or crime.  Dominic Johnson examines the ‘performance of extremity’ as an errant sequence of practices at the limits of histories of performance and art, through game-changing performances by Kerry Trengove, Ulay, Genesis P-Orridge, Anne Bean, the Kipper Kids and Stephen Cripps. Through close encounters with these six artists and others, Johnson articulates a counterhistory of actions in a new narrative of performance art in the 1970s, to rethink and rediscover the history of contemporary art and performance. Review 'A deeply fascinating, wide ranging and hard-thinking book about material often seen as "difficult" or "extreme". If I wanted one single guide who could reliably lead me through material which is so often misrepresented, I'd turn to Dominic Johnson, who surely is one of the most astute, knowledgeable and hard-thinking commentators on contemporary performance practices.' Simon Shepherd, Professor Emeritus of Theatre, CSSD, The University of London 'With Unlimited action: The performance of extremity in the 1970s Dominic Johnson brings his incisive mind to 1970s performances that point to or beyond art's (and the body's) limits. The book is invaluable in expanding our understanding of the work of key artists, including Ulay and Anne Bean, but also in addressing how extreme performances echo and amplify the volatile political texture of US and UK societies in a key decade for the expansion of contemporary art beyond the object.'Amelia Jones, Robert A. Day Professor, Roski School of Art and Design, University of Southern California 'Dominic Johnson's work engages performance art of the 1970s that sought to defy conventional notions of life and art. The case studies within each chapter form a sort of history. Not a linear narrative, but rather, a constellation of extremities that revel in their distance from the institutional frameworks that contextualize each performance.'The Drama Review From the Back Cover Unlimited action concerns the limits imposed upon art and life, and the means by which they were exceeded or challenged by performance art in the 1970s. Its author argues that through a series of performance actions, performance art reshaped aesthetics and the practice of art by way of performances that seem gratuitous, odd, illegible or unwarranted; which concede too much pain or pleasure, require too little skill, or disclose a surfeit of sex, infamy, cruelty or crime. Dominic Johnson examines the 'performance of extremity' as an errant sequence of practices at the limits of histories of performance and art, through game-changing performances by Kerry Trengove, Ulay, Genesis P-Orridge, Anne Bean, the Kipper Kids and Stephen Cripps. Through close encounters with these six artists and others, Johnson articulates a counterhistory of actions in a new narrative of performance art in the 1970s, to rethink and rediscover the history of contemporary art and performance. About the Author Dominic Johnson is a lecturer in the Department of Drama at Queen Mary University of London