Mierle Laderman Ukeles, an artist-in-residence at New York City's Department of Sanitation since 1977, challenges conventional perceptions of art through her focus on maintenance and caring work. Her pioneering 1969 manifesto parallels the roles of artists and sanitation workers, highlighting the often unrecognized labor essentials to societal function. The upcoming documentary, Maintenance Artist, aims to showcase her transformative approach that blends art with public service, emphasizing the significance of upkeep in everyday life through performances that reveal the invisible labor in our cities.
I started to occupy the area through this sort of repetition of maintenance, of cleaning, and people watched me and were afraid to enter the space.
In 1969, she published "MANIFESTO FOR MAINTENANCE ART, 1969!" which outlined parallels between her experiences as an artist and mother with sanitation workers.
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