"Rising hip-hop star Lexa Gates has been accused of imitating an acclaimed work by performance artist Miles Greenberg in order to promote her new album. Both performances were staged at Jeffrey Deitch gallery, which has issued a public apology to Greenberg for hosting an "unauthorized derivative" of his work and "failing to uphold the integrity of his work." The comparison between Greenberg and Gates's work has raised questions about what constitutes authorship in performance art."
"Greenberg, a protégée of Marina Abramović, has become something of a critical darling for bold and conceptually lively work that often requires impressive endurance. During the 18th hour of performing Oysterknife,Greenberg lost consciousness-the only pause in the 24-hour durational work before he immediately resumed walking. The artist said the work was a "love letter to Black pioneers of endurance," citing artists Senga Nengudi, Pope.L, and David Hammons."
Lexa Gates performed The Wheel at Jeffrey Deitch gallery on January 15, spending ten continuous hours walking inside a spinning wheel while her album "I Am" played on loop. Jeffrey Deitch issued a public apology to Miles Greenberg, acknowledging that the performance was an unauthorized derivative of Greenberg's Oysterknife (2020), for which he walked on a conveyor belt for 24 hours and screened a video at the same location in 2021. Greenberg lost consciousness during the 18th hour before immediately resuming and described Oysterknife as a "love letter to Black pioneers of endurance." Gates framed The Wheel as a metaphor for persistence, emotional resilience, and forward motion. The similarity between the works has prompted questions about creative ownership and originality in performance art.
Read at Artnet News
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