Pope.L., an interdisciplinary artist and professor at the University of Chicago known for his dense and provocative performance art that explores sociopolitical issues, died on December 23 at his home in Hyde Park. He was 68 years old.
Pope.L was born William Pope on June 28, 1955 in Newark, New Jersey to Lucille Lancaster and William Pope. He was raised by his mother, who is his nurse.
He was exposed to art at an early age. He spent part of his childhood in the East Village with his grandmother, Desma Lancaster, who was his house cleaner and an artist. In the 1960s, she exhibited her quilts at her studio in Harlem, introducing Pope.L to the art world and local artists.
Pope.L said in an interview that he grew up in an often unstable environment and moved frequently. His mother lived in Keyport, New Jersey. (The name “Pope.L” is a combination of the artist’s last name and the first letter of his mother’s last name.)
He attended Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and received his bachelor’s degree from Montclair State University (now known as Montclair State University) in 1978. He was also a student in the Whitney Independent Study Program and received his master’s degree from Rutgers University in 1981.
In a 2013 interview with Interview Magazine, Pope.L spoke at length about his introduction. performance art As an undergraduate student at Montclair State University.
“My first performances were during my undergraduate years. They came from creating a series of pieces called communication devices,” Pope.L said. “I went to Montclair State University (in New Jersey), and at the time I believed that the work had to have an answer, that you had to figure it out, like a real object. And I thought all I had to do was do these things, these performances well enough, and then I’d find the answer. Of course, I was wrong. ”
Using art to address inequality
Pope.L’s works drew attention for their play on American social and political dynamics, often satirizing the absurdities of the country’s politics, racism, and consumerism.
He is perhaps best known for his “crawl” performances, in which he completes locomotion on all fours, either alone or with a group of volunteers.
The most famous of these performances, “The Great White Way, 22 Miles, 9 Years, 1 Street,” featured Pope.L crawling down Broadway, Manhattan’s longest street. This journey, which he started in his 2001, took him nine years. He could only endure about 6 blocks of crawling at a time. While crawling, Pope.L donned a Superman costume and strapped a skateboard to his back instead of a cape.
“The Crawl Project was conceived as a group performance from the very beginning. Unfortunately for me, I was the only volunteer at the time,” Pope.L told Interview Magazine. Many of his “crawling” works began to feature large groups of crawling accomplices.
The sight of a man crawling along the (often) dirty streets of Manhattan evoked a visceral reaction from onlookers, and it was precisely this intuition and attention that Pope.L sought to generate and feed. did. Shortly after graduating from Rutgers University, he first wandered through Times Square to honor his homeless uncle and aunt.
“We’re used to people begging, but we were wondering how we could get this conflict going again. We don’t want to get used to seeing this. We need to remind people of this. I wanted to.” Pope L told Martha Wilson In 1996.
He also addressed the issue of water inequality in the United States in several ways. In 2017, Pope.L “flint water project” was held at the Detroit-based gallery What Pipeline. The exhibit sold bottles of contaminated water from Flint, Michigan, and served as an information center on the crisis.
In total, the exhibit raised more than $30,000 in donations. United Way of Genesee Countyhelping Flint-based organizations mitigate the crisis, hydration in detroita volunteer-led nonprofit that advocates for affordable water in Detroit.
In addition to crawling projects, Pope.L is also well known for his performances.eat wall street journal” was presented over five days in 2000.
This project was born out of Pope.L’s encounter with a Wall Street Journal ad that said newspaper subscriptions would double your wealth. Pope.L took this idea to the extreme, sitting on a toilet throne reading a paper and chewing on strips of paper soaked in milk and ketchup. After chewing, he spat out the piece of paper.
As he read and chewed, the Pope rubbed flour onto his body, whitening his skin in homage to the link between capitalism and whiteness and the disenfranchisement of people of color. The absurdity of the performance mimicked the absurdity of the advertising premise itself and attracted attention. Pope.L explained his own research and asked, “Shouldn’t ingesting (the paper) increase his wealth tenfold?”
Pope.L was represented by three galleries: Mitchell-Innes & Nash in New York City, Susanne Vielmetter in Los Angeles, and Modern Art in London. His work has been recognized numerous times with grants and awards, including a Guggenheim Fellowship, a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship, and a Bucksbaum Award.
Teacher and artist at C University.
Pope.L came to UC in 2010 to join the Department of Visual Arts. At the university, he taught and mentored young artists and students, and also contributed to the Hyde Park arts community.
His art work at the University of California includes a 2013 solo exhibition at the Renaissance Institute titled “Forlesen” and a 2017 solo exhibition at the Logan Center for the Arts titled “Brown People in Parking Lots Are Wrens.” included. ” In 2012, Pope.L’s permanent mural “Cliff” was installed on his eighth floor of the Logan Center at 915 E. 60th St.
“Pope L. was one of the most important artists of this century, or any century,” says Zachary Cahill, director of UC fellowships and programs. Gray Art Exploration CenterSaid chicago news. “It will take decades for scholars to truly unravel the depth and complexity of his work. He was also, without a doubt, one of the greatest teachers I have ever known. He was passionately dedicated to his students and cared about them in a way that is difficult for me to explain. , that I was teaching them their whole life. It was amazing.”
In 2021, Pope.L “my kingdom to win the title”, solo exhibition at the University of California’s Neubauer Collegium of Culture and Society, 5701 S. Woodlawn Ave. This is the gallery’s first exhibition since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has led to illnesses and hospitalizations. Hundreds of blue surgical masks swung from the ceiling, and paintings hung in fluorescent medicine cabinets.
“Pope L. was a passionate student of the human condition, a great interlocutor, and a kind soul,” said Matthew Jesse Jackson, professor and dean of visual arts at the University of California. chicago news. “He continually challenged us to think. His art is humane, generous, combative, and is one of the most important works of the 21st century.”
Pope.L is survived by his partner, Mami Takahashi. his brother Eugene Pope; and his son Desmond.