Maker/Artist
Kaprow, Allan
American performance artist, 1927-2006
Kaprow began his career as an Abstract Expressionist, creating "action collages" which used materials such as newspaper and straw. However, after studying musical composition under John Cage at the New School for Social Research, he focused his attention on "Happenings", and what he termed "Environments", which were sculptural installations (ie: "Yard" of 1961, which was a space filled with car tires that a viewer could walk over). In 1968, Kaprow began using the term "Activity" instead of Happening, and his work became more concerned with physical activities that could be performed by all, such as his work "The Perfect Bed", where participants took their favorite bed and moved it outdoors.