UNBOUND

In this final episode of UNBOUND , the focus is on a younger generation of artists who are redefining the medium by moving away from traditional concepts of performance, representation, and subversion. Still invested in the critical and political potentials of performance, these artists differ from previous generations in that they relate to larger structural inequalities through autobiographical...

Scholar Greg de Cuir Jr. and artist Ulysses Jenkins takecenter stage in this episode of UNBOUND, celebrating Black identity while challenging racist stereotypes. Their contributions reveal how performance and video can expose and subvert media-driven, discriminatory images of Black people and culture. Known for calling early video an “anti-medium,” Jenkins harnessed its power to resist and reimagi...

This episode of UNBOUND reexamines the origins of performance art through Black perspectives, featuring scholars Uri McMillan and Greg de Cuir Jr. and artist Howardena Pindell. We explore how performance and video art have shaped concepts of Blackness, and vice-versa, focusing on the liberating use of alter-egos and avatars. McMillan’s concept of “objecthood” reveals how Black artists have strateg...

This episode of UNBOUND explores the intersections of protest, performance, and digital culture with Los Angeles-based artist and filmmaker Stanya Kahn. We focus on her decade-spanning video work Stand in the Stream (2011-2017), an “ambient digital film” that fuses personal and political narratives. Centering her unique approach to performance and filmmaking, this episode not only highlights Kahn’...

This episode of UNBOUND examines the political implications of performance art with Amelia Jones, a leading scholar in performance and gender studies. Jones discusses how performance serves as a powerful tool for critique and disruption, particularly from a feminist perspective. Listeners are invited to reflect on key questions: How does performance expose power structures linked to identity? Can...

Together with renowned scholar Peggy Phelan, this episode of UNBOUND explores the foundations of performance art—its essence, limitations, and evolution alongside lens-based and digital technologies. Phelan argues that twentieth century performance is unique because of its elusive nature, as “something (that) could be enacted and then disappear.” This gives performance the potential to be inherent...