Beyond the Happening uncovers the heterogeneous, uniquely interdisciplinary performance-based works that emerged in the aftermath of the early Happenings. By the mid-1960s Happenings were widely declared outmoded or even ‘dead’, but this book reveals how many practitioners continued to work with the form during the late 1960s and 1970s, developing it into a vehicle for studying interpersonal communication that simultaneously deployed and questioned contemporary sociology and psychology. Focussing on the artists Allan Kaprow, Marta Minujín, Carolee Schneemann and Lea Lublin, it charts how they revised and retooled the premises of the Happening within a wider network of dynamic international activity. The resulting performances directly intervened in the wider discourse of communication studies, as it manifested in the politics of countercultural dropout, soft power and cultural diplomacy, alternative pedagogies, sociological art and feminist consciousness-raising.

'Beyond the Happening is an insightful and enjoyable contribution to the study of art and communication with a fresh international approach. The book’s outstanding illustrations make it a valuable archive piece for thought-provoking yet often overlooked artwork.'
Micaela G. Signorelli, Contemporary Theatre Review

'Beyond the Happening argues crucially and compellingly for an expansive critical understanding of Happenings, productively challenging the geographical and disciplinary boundaries of established art histories and deftly drawing out the vital political valency of Happenings via their urgent critical engagement with sociological, pedagogical, and communications networks.'
Lucy Bradnock, Reader in Modern and Contemporary Art and Dean for Research at The Courtauld Institute of Art, London

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Catherine Spencer is Senior Lecturer in Art History at the University of St Andrews