Ben Patterson
Ben Patterson was a pioneer artist of the Fluxus avant-garde. He began his childhood studying botany, zoology, rocks and minerals, and later devoted himself entirely to music.
He began studying music at the University of Michigan in 1952, graduating in 1956. A virtuoso bassist, because of his skin color, he could not join an American symphony orchestra. From 1956 to 1957, he joined the Halifax Symphony Orchestra in Canada, then from 1958 to 1959, the 7th United States Army Orchestra based in Germany, and returned to Canada with the Ottawa Philharmonic Orchestra until 1960.
His keen interest in electronic music research led him to Cologne, Germany, to follow the work of Karlheinz Stockhausen in the WDR studios. Nevertheless, during the concerts given in Mary Bauermeister’s studio, it was John Cage who fascinated him, whose Cartridge Music he performed in its world premiere.
At that time he met Nam June Paik and Wolf Vostell, and presented his first musical works, Paper Piece, Solo for Double Bass, Variations for Double Bass (in which objects such as pliers, clamps, etc. are attached to the double bass), which would become indispensable pieces for Fluxus concerts
He published a collection of his compositions and artistic experiments, Methods and Process, with the help of Daniel Spoerri. In 1962, in Paris, he exhibited his Puzzle Poems with Robert Filliou, collaborated in his “legitimate gallery” (which fits in his hat), and participated, invited by George Maciunas, in the Fluxus concerts of Wiesbaden and Copenhagen (1963), then returned to New York where he held a position as librarian at the New York Public Library.
In 1964, George Maciunas published Poems in Box and Instruction n° 2, and Ben Patterson created the performance Lick Piece (naked woman covered with whipped cream to lick).
He gradually abandoned his artistic activity, which he resumed by taking part in the Fluxus Festival in Wiesbaden in 1982, celebrating the movement’s twentieth anniversary, and then in the Sao Paulo Biennial in 1983. A solo exhibition was organized in 1988 at the Emily Harvey Gallery in New York. He organizes in 2012, the 50 years of Fluxus, a large retrospective in the city of Wiesbaden in Germany.
Since then, he has been the subject of numerous exhibitions in Europe, Asia, Russia and America, with concerts, readings and performances.
Ben Patterson
United States
29/05/1934 – 25/06/2016
He began studying music at the University of Michigan in 1952 and graduated in 1956. A virtuoso bassist, because of his skin color he could not join an American symphony orchestra; he then joined the Halifax Symphony Orchestra in Canada from 1956 to 1957, then from 1958 to 1959, the 7th U.S. Army Symphony Orchestra based in Germany, and finally returned to Canada with the Ottawa Philharmonic Orchestra until 1960.
His keen interest in electronic music research led him to Cologne, Germany, to follow the work of Karlheinz Stockhausen in the WDR studios. Nevertheless, during the concerts given in Mary Bauermeister’s studio, it is John Cage who fascinates him, whose work he interprets in a world premiere, Cartridge Music. At that time he met Nam June Paik and Wolf Vostell, and presented his first musical works, Paper Piece, Solo for Double Bass, Variations for Double Bass (where objects such as pliers, clamps, etc. are attached to the double bass) that will become indispensable pieces of the Fluxus concerts. Publishes a collection of his compositions and artistic experiments, Methods and Process, with the help of Daniel Spoerri.
In 1962, in Paris, he exhibited with Robert Filliou, his Puzzle Poemscollaborates in his “legitimate gallery”. (which fits in his hat), and participates, invited by George Maciunas, in the Fluxus concerts of Wiesbaden and Copenhagen (1963), then returns to New York where he occupies a post of librarian at the New York Public Library. In 1964, George Maciunas published Poems in Box and Instruction No. 2and Patterson creates the performance Lick Piece (naked woman covered with whipped cream to be licked) then he gradually abandons his artistic activity which he will resume by taking part in the Fluxus Festival of Wiesbaden in 1982, celebrating the twenty years of the movement, then in the Biennial of Sao Paulo in 1983.
A solo exhibition was organized in 1988 at the Emily Harvey Gallery in New York. Pioneer artist of the Fluxus avant-garde, he has not ceased to perform and exhibit throughout the world; in 2012, he organized the 50th anniversary of Fluxus, a large retrospective in the city of Wiesbaden in Germany.
