Laurie Anderson is one of America’s most renowned – and daring – creative pioneers. Known primarily for her multimedia presentations, she has cast herself in roles as varied as visual artist, composer, poet, photographer, filmmaker, electronics whiz, vocalist, and instrumentalist. Her seemingly boundless oeuvre includes the creation of books, albums, and performances that incorporate film, slides, recorded audio, live music, and spoken word. ​

Anderson has long been recognized as a groundbreaking leader in the use of technology in the arts and has developed new musical instruments, including the tape bow violin, in which the bow has been replaced with magnetic audiotape and the bridge with a reader.

As a long-term, artist-in-residence at MASS MoCA, Anderson invites viewers to explore a multi-functional constellation of galleries and installations in The Robert W. Wilson Building (B6).

Download a PDF of the exhibition guide here.

Principal exhibition support is provided by the Sakana Foundation. Major support for the virtual reality installation with Hsin-Chien Huang is provided by the Rainbow Initiative – Funds for Collaborative Cultural Projects by the Ministry of Culture, Taiwan, and National Chengchi University, Taiwan. Additional support is provided by Bowers & Wilkins.

Laurie Anderson, To Carry Heart’s Tide (The Canoe), 2020. Photo: Ron Blunt. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Courtesy of the artist.