Artist Oliver Herring to Speak and Lead TASK Party at UMass Amherst

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AMHERST, Mass. – Internationally renowned artist Oliver Herring will present a talk at the University of Massachusetts Amherst on Thursday, Feb. 22 at 4 p.m. in the Olver Design Building atrium.

On Friday, Feb. 23, Herring will lead a TASK party where participants of all ages dream up instructions for one another and carry them out with the materials provided. The event runs from 4-7 p.m. in the atrium of the Olver Design Building. Both events are free and open to the public. The TASK party is kid-friendly and fun for the whole family. Refreshments will be provided.

Born in Heidelberg, Germany, Herring lives and works in Brooklyn. In 2002, he created the improvisatory art event TASK, used in classrooms and communities to experience contemporary art in a way that is experimental, open-ended and accessible to anyone. Among Herring’s early works were his woven sculptures and performance pieces in which he knitted Mylar, a transparent and reflective material, into human figures, clothing and furniture. Since 1998, Herring has created stop-motion videos and participatory performances with “off the street” strangers. He makes sets for his videos and performances with minimal means and materials, recycling elements from one artwork to the next. 

Herring’s work has shown at the Museum of Modern Art, Guggenheim Museum of Art, Whitney Museum of Art, Hirschhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington, D.C., the Camden Art Center and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, the Kyoto Art Center in Japan, and Telescope project space in Beijing. TASK has taken place all over the United States and beyond including in classrooms, museums, libraries and even a cornfield. Herring’s work was featured in season 3 of “Art21: Art in the 21st Century” on PBS.

Herring’s visit is hosted by the art department at UMass Amherst.