Trisha Brown

Trisha Brown (1936–2017) was a pioneering American choreographer and one of the leading figures of postmodern dance. Born in Aberdeen, Washington, she trained in classical and modern dance before studying at Mills College and working with influential figures such as Anna Halprin, Merce Cunningham, and José Limón. In the early 1960s, she co-founded the Judson Dance Theater in New York, a collective that radically redefined performance, movement, and the role of the body in contemporary dance.

Over a career spanning five decades, Brown developed a highly influential choreographic language characterised by improvisation, spatial experimentation, and a refined, fluid movement vocabulary. Her work ranged from site-specific “equipment pieces” staged in urban environments to theater-based choreographies and operatic productions. In addition to her contributions to dance, she was also an accomplished visual artist, with work exhibited internationally at major institutions including the Venice Biennale and the Museum of Modern Art.