Eleanor Antin (1935, New York) is considered a pioneer representative of conceptual, feminist art. Her multimedia practice – spanning photography, film and video, performance, text, installation and drawing – explores questions of identity and politics through stories that intertwine personal and historical.

Fictional alter egos, such as The King, The Ballerina or The Nurse appear in many projects in various forms, subverting the forces behind societal roles and historical narratives. The iconic photographic series 100 boots (1971–73) – a road movie without people – is an example of the witty, ironic and political awareness that characterises her work. Carving: a traditional sculpture (1972) is an early feminist examination of the female body through taxonomy systems, often driven by patriarchal and colonial forces. Antin’s practice has been groundbreaking for subsequent generations of artists working with performance and self-representation.

This first major retrospective since 1999 – and the first ever in Europe – presents Antin’s œuvre in full breadth. The exhibition highlights the continued relevance and influence of her work from the late 1960s till today, when issues of power imbalance and collective and individual representation have taken on renewed urgency.