Introduction
Performa is a pioneering organization dedicated to exploring the critical role of live performance in the history of 20th and 21st century art. Founded in 2004 by renowned art historian and curator RoseLee Goldberg, Performa has transformed New York City into a laboratory for artistic experimentation through its signature biennial festival and year-round programming.
Unlike traditional performance festivals focused on theater or dance, Performa specifically champions performance by visual artists, creating a platform where painters, sculptors, photographers, and new media artists can explore the possibilities of live art. This distinct approach has established Performa as a vital catalyst for cross-disciplinary innovation and a global leader in commissioning groundbreaking performance works.
Every two years, the Performa Biennial activates venues throughout New York City with newly commissioned performances, historical reconstructions, and educational initiatives that draw over 50,000 attendees. The organization's impact extends far beyond these three-week festivals through its year-round commissioning program, educational institute, and extensive archive documenting the evolution of performance art.
In the News
Current coverage of Performa Biennial
Crossing Boundaries: How Performa Changed the Art World's Understanding of Performance
On a frigid November evening in 2005, a line stretched for blocks outside the Guggenheim Museum. Inside, Marina Abramović was preparing to spend seven nights performing "Seven Easy Pieces"—reconstructions of seminal performance works from the 1960s and '70s, each lasting seven hours. This watershed moment marked not only Abramović's triumphant return to the performance art canon but also the birth of Performa, a revolutionary biennial that would transform how the art world understands, experiences, and values live performance.
"That line outside the Guggenheim was a revelation," recalls RoseLee Goldberg, Performa's founder and chief curator. "Performance had been marginalized for decades, treated as secondary to object-making. Suddenly, here was undeniable proof that audiences were hungry for this immediacy, this presence that only live art can provide." As an art historian whose 1979 book "Performance Art: From Futurism to the Present" legitimized performance as a serious artistic discipline, Goldberg had spent decades advocating for performance's place in the canon. Performa became the institutional embodiment of that mission.
What distinguished Performa from the beginning was its focus on performance created specifically by visual artists rather than those from theater or dance backgrounds. This seemingly subtle distinction represented a radical curatorial intervention. By emphasizing visual artists' forays into live art, Performa highlighted performance not as a separate discipline but as an extension of artistic practice across media. As painter Julie Mehretu, who created her first performance for Performa 15, explained, "Working in performance opened entirely new dimensions in my thinking about space, time, and presence that fundamentally changed my approach to painting."
Performa's commissioning program, which develops new works over 12-24 months with substantial financial and production support, has become legendary for pushing artists beyond their comfort zones. For many established artists—from Joan Jonas and William Kentridge to Rashid Johnson and Barbara Kruger—Performa commissions have represented pivotal moments of reinvention. "What Performa does so brilliantly is create a context where failure becomes generative," notes art critic Claire Bishop. "Artists are encouraged to take risks that commercial galleries or museums might hesitate to support."
The biennial's distributed model, with performances staged across multiple venues throughout New York City, has been equally influential. Instead of containing performance within white cube galleries or traditional theaters, Performa activates the urban environment itself. Performances have unfolded in locations ranging from Times Square and Grand Central Terminal to abandoned factories and historic bathhouses. This approach not only makes performance more accessible to diverse audiences but also challenges artists to respond to the specificities of place, history, and community.
Perhaps Performa's most profound impact has been on the art market and institutional collecting practices. When Performa launched in 2005, performance works were rarely collected by major institutions and had minimal commercial value. Today, museums actively acquire performance works, developing sophisticated protocols for preserving, documenting, and restaging them. Commercial galleries represent performance artists alongside painters and sculptors, with collectors increasingly comfortable acquiring performance works through elaborate contractual agreements.
"Performa didn't just create a platform for performance—it built the entire infrastructure needed for performance to thrive within contemporary art ecosystems," explains Stuart Comer, Chief Curator of Media and Performance Art at MoMA. "From documentation strategies to new commissioning models to audience development, they've created a blueprint that institutions worldwide have adopted."
The biennial has also been pivotal in excavating overlooked histories, particularly those of women, artists of color, and non-Western practitioners. Performa's historical reconstructions—such as the recreation of Oskar Schlemmer's Bauhaus dances or Futurist "sintesi" performances—have literally brought art history to life, offering contemporary audiences experiential understanding of movements previously known only through documentation. The Performa Institute, the organization's year-round research and educational platform, further extends this historical mission through lectures, workshops, and publications.
As Performa approaches its 11th biennial in 2025, its continued relevance speaks to both the urgency of live art in a digitally mediated world and Goldberg's prescient understanding of performance's centrality to contemporary artistic practice. "What began as an attempt to address a historical omission has become something far more profound," reflects Goldberg. "Performance has emerged as the medium most responsive to our current moment—addressing embodiment, presence, and community at a time when these experiences are increasingly rare."
In a cultural landscape where NFTs and virtual experiences compete for attention, Performa insists on the irreducible value of live encounter—the shared experience of bodies in space and time. As Jennifer Piejko wrote in Artforum, "In an era obsessed with the scalability of experience, Performa champions the unscalable, the unreproducible moment of co-presence between artist and audience." That insistence on presence, on the electric current that passes between performer and witness, may be Performa's most radical contribution to contemporary art—and the secret to its enduring influence.
Mission & Approach
Performa's mission extends beyond presenting performances to fundamentally reshaping how the art world values and engages with live art. This multifaceted approach includes commissioning new works, presenting the biennial, conducting historical research, and building a comprehensive archive of performance documentation.
The organization's commissioning process is particularly distinctive, involving 12-24 months of close collaboration between curators and artists. Many participants create performance work for the first time, requiring extensive conceptual development, technical support, and production resources. This commitment to process has enabled Performa to develop some of the most ambitious and influential performance works of the 21st century.
Underlying all of Performa's activities is a scholarly approach informed by Goldberg's pioneering research. The organization positions performance not as a peripheral practice but as central to understanding artistic movements from Futurism and Dada to Fluxus and conceptual art. Each biennial typically explores a specific historical reference point or theoretical framework, creating dialogue between past and present performance practices.
Performa also emphasizes the role of performance in addressing urgent social and political issues, supporting works that engage with questions of identity, power, ecology, and technological change. By activating public spaces throughout New York City, the biennial creates encounters between art and audiences who might never enter traditional cultural institutions.
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History & Development
Performa emerged from a critical gap in the institutional support for performance art at the turn of the 21st century. Despite performance's centrality to avant-garde movements throughout the 20th century, it remained marginalized within major museums and the art market. Goldberg, who had been advocating for performance art since the 1970s, founded Performa to address this historical omission and create a dedicated platform for live art.
The inaugural Performa 05 set a precedent with its ambitious scale and curatorial rigor. Marina Abramović's "Seven Easy Pieces" at the Guggenheim became an instant landmark, while commissions from emerging artists established Performa's reputation for risk-taking and discovery. The first biennial attracted over 25,000 attendees, demonstrating the significant audience interest in performance that traditional institutions had overlooked.
Founding of Performa by RoseLee Goldberg as a non-profit arts organization dedicated to performance by visual artists
Inaugural Performa Biennial features Marina Abramović's landmark "Seven Easy Pieces" at the Guggenheim Museum
Performa 07 expands to include more international artists and introduces the commissioning program for new works
Performa 09 takes the centenary of Futurism as its historical reference point, including reconstructions of Futurist performances
Launch of the Performa Institute for year-round research and educational programming
Performa 13 introduces the concept of "Pavilions Without Walls," collaborating with international partners
Performa celebrates its 10th anniversary with expanded historical programming and global partnerships
Focus on Dada as historical reference; introduction of Performa Radical Broadcast for digital distribution
Performa 19 explores the Bauhaus centenary with reconstructions of Oskar Schlemmer's Triadic Ballet
Post-pandemic edition features outdoor and hybrid performances addressing themes of collective trauma and healing
Performa 2023 explores themes of ecological crisis and technological mediation with expanded digital presence
Each subsequent biennial has built upon this foundation while exploring different curatorial frameworks. Performa 09 examined the centenary of Futurism, reconstructing historical performances alongside contemporary responses. Performa 13 introduced the concept of national "pavilions without walls," inspired by the Venice Biennale model but liberated from fixed architectural spaces. Performa 19 celebrated the Bauhaus centenary with reimaginings of its experimental performance workshops.
The COVID-19 pandemic presented unique challenges for an organization dedicated to live encounter. Performa 2021 responded with a hybrid model of outdoor performances and digital programming that maintained the biennial's commitment to presence while acknowledging new modes of connection. This adaptability reflects Performa's ongoing evolution as both a presenter of cutting-edge performance and a thought leader in redefining performance's place within contemporary culture.
Notable Commissions
At the heart of Performa's work is its commissioning program, which provides substantial financial and production support to artists creating ambitious new performance pieces. These commissions have resulted in some of the most significant performance works of the 21st century, many of which have gone on to tour internationally and enter museum collections.
The commissioning process typically spans 12-24 months, during which Performa's curatorial team works closely with artists to develop concepts, secure venues, coordinate technical elements, and navigate the challenges of creating live work. Many commissioned artists are venturing into performance for the first time, making this collaborative process particularly crucial to the success of the work.
Rashid Johnson: "Dutchman" (2013)
A powerful reimagining of Amiri Baraka's 1964 play staged in the historic Russian and Turkish Baths on 10th Street, exploring racial tensions in an intimate, claustrophobic environment.
Ragnar Kjartansson: "Bliss" (2011)
A 12-hour performance in which the final aria from Mozart's "The Marriage of Figaro" was repeated continuously, exploring endurance, repetition, and transcendence.
Barbara Kruger: "Untitled (Skate)" (2017)
A transformed skate park featuring Kruger's iconic text-based visuals, activating public space as performance venue and engaging with youth culture.
Juliana Huxtable: "There Are Certain Facts That Cannot Be Disputed" (2015)
A multimedia performance exploring digital identity, gender fluidity, and Afrofuturism through movement, sound, and projected imagery.
Other significant commissions have included Tania Bruguera's "Immigrant Movement International" (2011), which established a community space in Queens addressing immigration policy; William Kentridge's "I am not me, the horse is not mine" (2009), a lecture-performance based on Nikolai Gogol's "The Nose"; and Mika Rottenberg's "Cosmic Generator" (2017), a surreal performance-installation exploring global labor and consumption.
These commissions have not only advanced individual artists' practices but collectively expanded the language of performance art, influencing how museums, galleries, and other biennials approach live work. Many Performa commissions have entered major museum collections, including the Museum of Modern Art, Tate Modern, and Centre Pompidou, validating performance as a collectible art form.
Performa Performance Highlights
Experience the dynamic atmosphere of Performa through this video showcasing performances from recent biennials, offering a glimpse into the diversity and innovation that defines this groundbreaking event.
Video: Performa Biennial Performance Highlights | Watch on YouTube
Key Venues
One of Performa's distinctive features is its use of diverse venues throughout New York City, activating both established cultural institutions and unconventional spaces. Rather than being confined to traditional theater or gallery settings, Performa performances have taken place in locations ranging from historic bath houses and repurposed warehouses to public parks and iconic skyscrapers.
For each biennial, Performa establishes a central hub that serves as a gathering point, information center, and venue for smaller performances, talks, and events. In addition to this hub, performances are distributed across partner institutions and site-specific locations chosen to complement the themes and requirements of each commission.
Performa Hub
A central meeting point established for each biennial, hosting talks, screenings, and smaller performances in a dedicated space.
Guggenheim Museum
Host to landmark performances including Marina Abramović's "Seven Easy Pieces" during the inaugural biennial and Tino Sehgal's choreographed interactions.
Brooklyn Academy of Music
A recurring venue partner providing theater spaces for more technical performance productions requiring formal staging.
Public Spaces
Urban environments including Times Square, Grand Central Terminal, and various parks frequently activated as performance sites.
This distributed model not only maximizes audience reach but creates unique contexts for artistic response. Performers must contend with the specific architectural, historical, and social dimensions of each space, often incorporating these elements into their work. The result is a biennial that functions as both a cultural event and an alternative mapping of New York City, revealing hidden histories and unexpected connections across urban space.
Performa has also pioneered the concept of "pavilions without walls," collaborating with international cultural partners to present work by artists from specific countries or regions throughout the city. Unlike the national pavilions of the Venice Biennale, which are confined to dedicated buildings, these borderless pavilions emphasize cultural exchange and integration within the urban fabric.
Venue Locations
Performa takes place across multiple venues in New York City, with a central Performa Hub and performances distributed throughout cultural institutions and site-specific locations.
New York City Guide for Performa
Navigate New York like a performance art insider with our curated guide to the city's vibrant creative scene during the biennial and beyond.
Experimental performance spaces
Gallery district & artist hangouts
Artist-run spaces & studios
Midnight Moment public art
Performance Venues Year-Round
- 📍 The Kitchen: Pioneering space for experimental performance since 1971
- 📍 Performance Space New York: Former home of P.S.122, dedicated to contemporary performance
- 📍 The Shed: Innovative cultural center in Hudson Yards with flexible performance spaces
- 📍 Danspace Project: Dance and movement-based performance in St. Mark's Church
Local Tips
During Performa, many venues offer special late-night programs. The Performa Hub hosts daily morning talks with artists and curators. Most performances require tickets even when free, so reserve early. The Performa Passport gives access to multiple events at a discount.