Hermann Nitsch, the Austrian artist and a key figure in the provocative Vienna Actionist group, known for his use of animal sacrifice, entrails, blood and orgiastic performances, has died. Initially involved in theatre, an exhibition of Abstract Expressionist work in Vienna led Nitsch first to action painting and eventually to immersive and often controversial performances for which he is known.
His 1962 three-part ritualistic action The Blood Organ (organised with fellow Actionists Otto Muehl and Adolf Frohner) featured the artists being walled up in a basement, the slaughtering of animals, quasi-religious sacrifices, nudity and the representation of crucifixion. The audience was encouraged to join in on the work, with dancing and music used to activate all the senses.
From 1971 Nitsch would regularly stage his Orgies Mysteries Theatre events at Prinzendorf Castle in Austria (a building he had bought from the Catholic Church), immersive performances often involving hundreds of participants. These and other works often attracted the attention of the police, moralists and animal rights activists; Nitsch was arrested three times and at one point expelled from Italy for disemboweling a sheep during a performance.
He continued to shock in his later years with the artist’s 6-day Play in 1998, and event featuring over 500 participants, 13,000 litres of wine, hundreds of litres of blood, kilograms of grapes and tomatoes, several animal carcasses, ‘scream choirs’ and ampified musical accompaniments.
In 2013 Museo Jumex in Mexico City cancelled a retrospective at the last minute, citing its violent content.
