New Artist Op-Ed: Ron Athey on the "Post-AIDS" Body

For the fourth installment of the Walker Art Center's Artist Op-Eds series, I invited Ron Athey to share his perspective on the 1994 Minneapolis performance that all but blacklisted him at US art venues for a decade, his life with HIV, and the realization that the disease wouldn't kill him after all. The result, "Polemic of Blood: Ron Athey on the 'Post-AIDS' Body," marks the first time Athey has discussed the events of March 1994 on a Walker platform (and the most comprehesive addressing of it by the Walker to date), and he'll likely revisit some of these themes next week during the weekend-long series of events Culture Wars: Then & Now here in Minneapolis. The essay comes out as Athey commemorates the 30th anniversary of his diagnosis with HIV and shares news of his return to Los Angeles after six years living overseas. It's a surprisingly poignant piece that sheds light on the life experiences and thinking that propel Athey's work.