"Poke in the Eye/Nose/Ear"
Bruce Nauman
Filmed in August 2000, Bruce Nauman discusses his video work Poke in the Eye/Nose/Ear (1994). The artist filmed himself poking his face and then slowed the footage down, forcing viewers to pay attention to the formal qualities of each frame.
Nauman reflects on how fellow artists such as John Cage, Merce Cunningham, and Andy Warhol also reconsidered time and duration.
Featured artists
About the artists
Bruce Nauman was born in 1941 in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and currently lives and works near Galisteo, New Mexico. He graduated with a BFA from the University of Wisconsin, Madison, in 1964, and with an MFA from the University of California, Davis, in 1966. In his work, Nauman uses videos, sculptures, holograms, neon lights, and installations to create scenarios that disrupt viewers’ habits of perception. By investigating themes of time, control, and language, the artist creates an open-ended body of work that prioritizes process over product and expands the possibilities of what art may be.
