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Students in Lenoir-Rhyne University’s Art
History III class recently presented a
“happening,” defined as “an improvised or
informal performance or demonstration, often
dramatic in form and using audience
participation.”
The happening resulted from the class’s study
of the Avant-Garde artists of the 1950s and 1960s.
These included visual artists Robert Rauschenberg
and Allan Kaprow, among others. These artists
celebrated the importance and meaning of everyday
activities and experiences. They were influenced
by musical composer John Cage’s idea of using
randomness or accident in creating art. American
painter Jackson Pollock also influenced this group
by focusing on the process of painting as an
artistic event. The “happening” was born to
transform the viewer into a participant who
interacted with the art.
The Lenoir-Rhyne happening used the theme of
“wastefulness.” Different rooms of the Visual
Arts Center on campus were decorated with objects
that told a story of different types of waste in
today’s world. Visitors were invited to walk
through the rooms to experience the happening.
The entrance hall to the building was covered
in black plastic garbage bags. On the floor were
scattered plastic shopping bags. This area
represented the waste of our natural resources
that occurs when people do not recycle.
A female mannequin stood in a bathroom. She was
standing on scales and staring into a mirror
marked “You’re ugly. Nobody likes you.” This
display represented the wasted potential of people
suffering from eating disorders.
Another room symbolized “a wasted
education.” Various kinds of rote memorization
lessons were projected on the wall as students sat
in the desks with their heads down. In contrast to
this type of education, some of the students’
artwork was placed on the other side of the room
to represent creativity.
Another room included photographs, a piece of
student artwork and a symbolic representation of
abortion. This area represented the lives wasted
due to war and abortion. In the final room were
mirrors that invited the participant to look at
their own wasteful practices.
The happening also included several window
shutters that had been reclaimed by incorporating
them into new art. In addition to creating the
happening, the class also co-wrote a history of
the Avant-Garde movement, which was donated to the
Hickory Museum of Art.
The students who participated in this project
included Austin Rieley, Daniel Charles, Natalie
Krause, Mallory Eudy, Karmen Bixby and Craig Knauf.
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