Sharon Hayes

ECHO

Sharon Hayes (born in 1970 in Baltimore) lives and works in Philadelphia. With a background in journalism and anthropology, she came to New York’s experimental theatre scene in the early 1990s. Hayes mines the power of the spoken word in works ranging from entirely personal address to agitation on urgent social issues. In her performances, photographs and sound and video pieces, she relocates private speech to the public sphere. A central aspect of her work is the relationship between language, history, and politics. Hayes is currently one of the most influential politically and socially committed artists in the USA.

“Echo” explores the idea of the exhibition as an echo chamber, where Hayes lets voices and materials reverberate between different historic events. It also references a feminist interpretation of the classical myth of Echo, the nymph who is cursed for her conversational skills. She is condemned to only repeat fragments said by others, sounds devoid of meaning.

Authors: Sharon Hayes, Lena Essling
170 x 235 mm
Softcover
Moderna Museet and Koenig Books 2019 
© Sharon Hayes
Photography by Moderna Museet