Blood, Guts, and Anarchy - The Work of Kathy Acker

The work of Kathy Acker (1947–1997) was experimental, confrontational and innovative. This year-long exhibition focuses on how Acker developed her own feminist literary language. She explored themes such as gender, identity, the body and desire, and opposed patriarchy and capitalism.

Acker challenged the literary canon by using plagiarism, cut-up techniques and transgression. She wrote from physical experience, thereby questioning the idea of the writer as an inspired individual. Gender is fluid in her work and identity is never unambiguous. At the same time, her raw work, in which sex and violence play a role, is also clearly linked to the time in which it was created.

The exhibition Blood, Guts, and Anarchy: The Work of Kathy Acker is on display in the so-called 'corner offices' of the former American Embassy. The exhibition explores Acker's roots in the New York underground scene of the 1970s, her relationship with performance art, and her political and philosophical ideas. It is the first presentation of Kathy Acker's work in the Netherlands.