Senza Fretta, Simone Forti’s first major exhibition in an Italian museum, was conceived as a focus on the hybrid practice of the artist, whose research ranges from dance, film and drawing to sound and writing, with a political slant that is, at the same time, also personal.

Internationally acclaimed as a key figure in the development of performance from the late 1950s to the present day, Forti’s work is based on experience, movement and the improvisation skills of the body in relation to language and objects. In particular, it is the physical expression practised through dance – a dance rooted in primary movements and everyday gestures – that is the fundamental key to her work.

Throughout the exhibition at the Centro Pecci, some of the artist’s best-known performances (Cloths, 1967; Sleepwalkers, 1968; Scramble, 1970) were reenacted on a weekly basis, together with works staged for the first time on this occasion (Song of the Vowels, 2012; Rollers, 1978–2021). The pièces were performed by a group of performers, heterogeneous in terms of age, gender, origin and training, selected and trained for the exhibition by Sarah Swenson, Simone Forti’s long-time pupil and collaborator.

The conveying of the performative experience and hence its teaching, through workshops and laboratories, is a fundamental element of the artist’s practice, who views the staging of her performances as a “passage of knowledge between bodies.” The reenactment of the performances constantly raises ontological questions about the originality, transmission and temporality of the work; in Simone Forti’s practice, the reactivation of the performances makes them a “dynamic organism” that remains active over time, still accessible to a changing community; the museum, even in the single act of an exhibition, becomes a sort of guarantor of the work’s dissemination, an activator with respect to the specific community created around the work, and a means of documentation aimed at creating a living archive of the performance.

The title of the show

The title – Senza Fretta – of Simone Forti’s exhibition at the Centro Pecci in Prato was produced when I went to see Simone in Los Angeles to discuss the show. Knowing that Simone often chooses titles by randomly opening a book of poems by William Carlos Williams, I asked her if we could use the same method to find the title of this exhibition. So, opening the book at random, she put her finger on these words which, translated into Italian are “senza fretta” (no hurry), and straight away it seemed an ideal title.

Structuring the show

Simone Forti’s practice and all her work are not immediately translatable into the classic language of an exhibition, and, as a result, they challenge it. Simone as an artist defies classification. If her research is presented in a literal way, it risks losing its vitality of language and its methods of expression. First and foremost, I discussed with Simone the appropriateness of looking at the work from a different angle, using the News Animations (1980 – ongoing) – which is not only a series of works but corresponds to an authentic practice – as a sort of Trojan horse through which to look at all of her research in a more general sense. We also responded to the specific limitations of the exhibition space in order to make the exhibition performative, as though it were a live show which is not, however, constant, since the other dimension of the exhibition is defined by the simultaneous presence of videos, drawings and works on paper. From this perspective, we worked a lot on the sound.

Sound and video

Sound is the element that acts as the Leitmotiv of the entire exhibition. It is a sound track specially designed for this project, consisting of a collage of experiments that Simone Forti has carried out over the years: instrumental recordings, songs and readings from an autobiographical book. Its aim was to make the exhibition experiential and immersive. The videos themselves are projected following the architecture of the space, so as to integrate them as naturally as possible. The Centro Pecci is completely curvilinear, and there is nothing functional or regular about it. Hence, the only key was to move in response to its peculiarities.

The role of words

The use of the word and critical attention to language are essential in Simone Forti’s practice, particularly in the News Animations. The first performances, the Dance Constructions (1960–61), were an attempt to produce a hybridisation between the body, movement and sculpture. In the News Animations, a series that began in the mid-1980s, the use of words becomes more explicit in pursuit of an expanded language. Both in the drawings, where the word always appears in an evocative form, and in the performances, the News Animations draw their inspiration from reading the news published in newspapers. Taking her cue from the headlines or from articles, the artist generates a chain of associations in which words and movement become tools that, intermingling, produce a precise way of working in reaction to what has been read and shared. This is not simply a series of works but an authentic practice, initially developed in the laboratories and workshops that Simone held in those years and that she has continued to pursue.

Simone Forti and her influence

Summing up Simone Forti’s research is not easy and attempting to summarise it in a linear way would be contrary to the spirit that animates it, as it is a poetic work that lends itself to being read by everyone in a heterogeneous manner. This is the most engaging aspect, especially when you are lucky enough to see the live performances. Focusing on the News Animations series, the exhibition at the Centro Pecci brings out a more political and social – albeit not militant – dimension of Simone Forti’s practice that had not yet been explored, even though it has always been present from the outset. Think of a performance like Huddle (1961), which features in the exhibition as a video, in which a group of 6/7 performers create a sort of structure, which is constantly in motion, and can be interpreted from many different perspectives. Another performance in the exhibition is inspired by the observation of animals in zoos: the caged animals are confined in a space that deprives them of their freedom and of movement. Simone’s role in the history of contemporary art is crucial: if we have finally arrived at a propensity on the part of museums and the public to languages other than those of the visual arts, it is also thanks to her. It is a common phenomenon today to see figures in museums working with sound, dance and moving images. From this standpoint, Simone was one of the artists who pushed the boundaries between disciplines the most, and who did so at a time in history when this was by no means a given. Today she is finally enjoying the recognition she deserves, although it should be pointed out that her originality had been celebrated by the artistic community from the very beginning. Simone’s influence is as monumental as her work appears fragile and ephemeral.

Addressing social issues

The political and social dimension in Simone’s work is present but never explicitly, which is why I find her work deeply poetic. This can be seen simply by watching the News Animations videos. The news items she chooses to activate are always related to the themes of war, climate change and racial conflicts, covering a time span of the past forty years, ranging from the Cold War to the current conflicts. The idea of activating the news is an invitation to us to use our bodies to express ourselves freely instead of passively accepting what is conveyed to us, especially today, given the limitations imposed on the freedom of the press and the proliferation of fake news.

The relationship with young people and her legacy

Throughout her life Simone Forti has always taught, always interweaving relationships between different communities and generations. Although the works on display belong to different periods, they all share the same vitality, particularly the performances which are no longer done by Simone, but by other dancers through a kind of oral tradition. There is a joyful aspect and at the same time a challenging of the very idea of dance and movement, but also of the idea of sculpture, which runs through and embodies all of Simone’s poetics. A deeply personal approach influenced by dialogue with other artists. Right from the outset, Simone has collaborated with musicians, directors, choreographers and dancers, such as Charlemagne Palestine, Peter van Riper and Hollis Frampton. Simone’s practice clashes with and challenges all the paradigms of both art history and the art system. Suffice it to think of the reflections that are prompted when research of this kind enters a museum collection; it forces the institution into a radical self-interrogation since it eludes the conventionality of what is traditionally considered to be a work of art.

The exhibition at Centro Pecci

Simone Forti has never been interested in producing objects, but in working critically with movement in an expanded form. For this reason, Simone has rarely come into contact with the language of exhibitions and it is only in the last 10 to 15 years that she has begun to exhibit more continuously in museums and galleries, although her direct involvement is rare. In this case, I wanted her to be involved in the conception right from the start, even though, for health reasons, she could not physically come to the museum. Compared to previous exhibitions – in particular the more all-encompassing 2014 exhibition at the Museum der Moderne Salzburg entitled Thinking with the Body: A Retrospective in Motion – the exhibition at the Centro Pecci is not a retrospective, but attempts to adapt the exhibition medium to Simone’s approach, without distorting it, by trying to maintain a performative dimension, allowing the element of liveness to be applied together with the language of the work, the exhibition and the museum.

A movement artist

I think most of us have a traditional idea of what a choreographer is. If we were to say, for example, of Simone Forti that “she is a choreographer,” people would imagine that she creates specific steps that have to be performed in a certain way, and everyone has to be very precise in the way they perform them, and they have to be the same every time. (It is a kind of stereotype of what a choreographer is, or maybe, what it was considered to be in the past. Today, however, that definition is changing.) This is not what she does. Because there are so many different types of movement, not just the movement of the body, but for example, the movement of textiles, which is exactly the movement of this piece, Cloths (1967). So a “movement artist” does not create movements exclusively for the human body. Another example is Onion Walk (1961), where an onion is placed at the mouth of a bottle, it sprouts and nourishes itself until the green growth becomes heavier than the bulb, and it falls off. The fall is movement, but so is the growth, this invisible, slow progress is also movement. Simone writes, and writing is also a form of movement. This is why Simone Forti defines herself as a “movement artist”.

Sources of inspiration

The sources for Simone Forti’s works are extremely varied. She could be prompted by a dream, a memory, or by a desire to fulfil. For example, Huddle (1961), which Simone created when she came back from California, where she had been on Anna Halprin’s outdoor dance deck, in the midst of nature, with trees, water, and rivers… and arriving in New York there was nothing like this, it’s all concrete. I think she just wanted to use her body – if she wanted a mountain to climb, she was going to do it with what she had available. So, in creating Huddle, a sculpture made of human bodies taking turns climbing over each other, she gave vent to a desire, a physical desire that she wanted to fulfil. We know that Cloths stems from a dream she had, in which someone told her “go away” and she did not want to go, instead hiding behind a curtain. This is the origin of Cloths. Another example, she told me that when she created Hangers (1961) she felt depressed. But remaining suspended, and feeling her own weight and mass, it was enough.

Collaboration for the exhibition

Conducting the installation together, as was the case at the Centro Pecci in Prato, required collaboration between the curators here, the representatives of Simone, Simone herself, the representatives of a museum like MoMA, and myself, depending on the pieces that were to be included. Collaboration depends on many factors. I think collaboration is the main thing, because there are differences between what Simone wants, what the curators want, and what can effectively be done. For example, at the beginning they wanted some Dance Constructions (1960–61) for the installation in Prato, but we couldn’t do this because of the pandemic, so we needed flexibility in order to create something new in the end. Things change constantly, and it has been a long process of give-and-take and therefore of collaboration.

The role of music

The role of music in Simone Forti’s work is not the same in every piece. She has done some pieces in which there are no intentional audio elements, and yet sound is created, and others where the sound has been included for a purpose. For example, in Slant Board (1961) the activity is climbing with ropes, but when a rope is released, it falls, striking the board and creating a particular sound. The piece was not created for the purpose of sound, and yet sounds are made. For Accompaniment for La Monte’s 2 sounds (1961) and La Monte’s 2 sounds (1961), on the other hand, she heard the music and decided to do something very simple to accompany it. That music is a cacophony, but the piece itself is very still. Simone wanted the spectators to listen to the music. The performer remains very still, and does nothing but listen, so the spectators, in turn, are encouraged to listen. This is an example where the inspiration for the piece was this music. Another example is Scramble (1970) in which the sound is the noise of footsteps. So, the intention is not the same every time – we have the audio of Cloths, the recorded voice, sometimes there is a “whoosh” when the cloth is thrown forward. We also have Platforms (1961), from Dance Constructions, in which the performers whistle, so the sound has intention, but it is not the only element. I don’t think anyone can identify a single source. In Censor (1961) however, also from Dance Constructions, sound is the primary element. Simone is really multifaceted, she doesn’t just do one thing, she makes sound, movement, she writes.

Imitating animal behaviour

We know that Zoo Mantras (1968–2010) comes from Simone’s habit of observing animals. The bear for example: when we worked on this and she told me about this piece, we tried to behave like bears, or to follow an element of the bear behaviour. But – because these animals that she observed were in a zoo, they were confined. So this behaviour that she observed might be the result of confinement. So, it wasn’t necessarily the bear in the wild – although it could be – sometimes we would watch videos of bears in the woods. “Emulating” is the best word, emulating the animal. We try to imitate the physical behaviour of the creatures, but at the same time it is an abstraction, because we are not those animals, but we try to bring out the essence of their movements, their activities. We can only approximate.

Dance Constructions: the origin, not the synthesis

The Dance Constructions are not a synthesis of the work of Simone. They were the first pieces she created and everything else came afterwards. Yes, they are probably her most famous work at an international level, but they do not, by any means, sum up the entirety of her output. Partly because they are a unique creation. There is nothing else like the Dance Constructions. They are works of sculpture and movement at one and the same time. And they exist in both time and space. Simone produced them very early in her career, very early in her productive life, at the beginning of the 1960s. And many and varied ingenious things came later. I would like to add that we don’t talk enough about her unique qualities as a performer. Simone should also be known for this too. It is a very important element of her greatness.

The inspiration for the Dance Constructions 

I could answer the question about the origin of the Dance Constructions only partially. I remember she was married to Bob Morris, and they were living in New York. And according to Simone, it wasn’t clear who was influencing whom in that situation. Simone had a notebook and she simply drew some of her ideas, with the Slant Board, which had a 90-degree angle, and the ropes, what we now call the “hanging pieces.” She had a concept of something substantial: wood and rope, that could somehow be used by people, but she did not know how to create it. And she says that Bob said: “I’ll make it for you,” and he made it from pieces of wood he found on the streets. I have an image in my mind of Simone sitting on the bed drawing. What is the source of creativity? It really is unknown. When you get an idea and people ask you, “where did your idea come from?” You can’t always pinpoint it. How can you explain when a person produces an idea? It’s really difficult to explain how it happens. Sometimes, as in Cloths, the idea comes from a specific dream, but most things emerge from our minds, but we don’t know exactly from where. I think it’s related to Simone’s leaving rural northern California and coming to New York, a new city, and wanting to use her body, climbing the Slant Board with a rope and feeling her physical body. Holding the weight of your body for ten minutes is really difficult, a great effort, but a serious attempt to ground yourself. And once you are tired you rest, it’s fundamentally human.

Sarah Swenson’s News Animations

Each of the News Animations (1980–ongoing) is different, it depends who does it, and it depends, sometimes, where we are chronologically. But the News Animations are always political. In this case I was thinking about the past year, the significance of the history of the United States and how we have ended up in the situation we are in now. This is not a new idea for me, but it means that now, more than ever, we have to look back and to say (very belatedly, in my opinion) that what happened was not right. There are so many things we have to face, as you can see, we are a divided country, and half of us don’t want to think about or accept our bloody history, while the other half says that we have to do something NOW. In my process, I have made a timeline which runs from 1492 to 2021. I write down thoughts, I read, I have transcribed facts, readings, I have mixed them up…

Relationship with the spectators

This is the easiest question you have asked me so far! I think the reason why Simone’s pieces appeal to spectators is because they are recognizable as something that they as people have done, are doing, or can do. For example, in Scramble (1970), there are people simply walking and running. Many of Simone’s pieces contain everyday activities, such as walking, running, falling, climbing, hanging, speaking… she is not a dancer doing something virtuosic that no-one else can do. So virtuosity is understood in another way, with another definition, in Simone’s works. Doing these simple actions means that we have to let go of much of what we have been taught, and learn to do it in a natural way, more like children. So as to walk normally, run normally, talk normally. The hardest thing for some people, especially trained dancers, is to let go of their technique and do these very ordinary, simple things that are part of having a human body. There is no training. The training is to let go of the training!