Lygia Clark wearing Máscara abismo com tapa-olhos (Abyssal mask with eye-patch, 1968), a work made of fabric, elastic bands, a nylon bag, and a stone. Courtesy Associação Cultural "O Mundo de Lygia Clark," Rio de Janeiro. Photo Sergio Gerardo Zalis, 1986.
This retrospective for the pioneering Brazilian artist, “Lygia Clark: The Abandonment of Art, 1948-1988” contains some 300 works. Featuring numerous examples of her well-known modular, interactive abstract sculptures in metal, the show also highlights the elegant early geometric paintings that were part of the Neo-Concretist movement in Brazil. Most importantly, the exhibition offers an in-depth examination of her performance-based works, which demonstrate why Clark (1920-1988) is currently regarded as one of the most influential figures of the international 20th-century avant-garde.