Joan Jonas: They Come to Us without a Word

NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore presents They Come to Us without a Word by pioneering video and performance artist, Joan Jonas for the U.S. Pavilion at the 56th Venice Biennale. This is the first showcase of the U.S. Pavilion and the premiere solo exhibition for internationally acclaimed artist, Joan Jonas in Singapore and Southeast Asia. Awarded a prestigious ‘Special Mention’ at the Venice Biennale, They Come to Us without a Word evokes the fragility of nature in a rapidly changing situation and explores specific subjects, such as bees or fish, and narratives of ghost stories. Jonas’ interdisciplinary approach towards her practice continues to be crucial to the development of many contemporary art genres, from performance and video, to conceptual art and theatre.

They Come to Us without a Word was organised for the U.S. Pavilion of the 56th Venice Biennale by the MIT List Visual Arts Center and co-curated by Paul C. Ha, Director of the MIT List Visual Arts Center and Ute Meta Bauer, Founding Director of the NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore. The exhibition has been generously supported by U.S. Department of State, Cynthia and John Reed, the Helen Frankenthaler Foundation, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Additional major support was provided by the Council for the Arts at MIT, Toby Devan Lewis, VIA Art Fund, Agnes Gund, Lambent Foundation, the U.S. Embassy Singapore and many other generous individuals, foundations, and corporations.