ABSTRACT
Over the last few years there has been a proliferation of articles, conferences and exhibitions centering on the body. This trend, which was apparent at Documenta IX in 1992 and the Whitney Biennial in 1993, has literally exploded since then. Current developments in media and genetic technologies as well as in theories of representation have given rise to intensive debates concerning the body and its conceptual understanding. Since the body supposedly disappeared along with performance art around 1980, 1 this trend is being celebrated as its rediscovery. Apparently, the art establishment needs such clear distinctions between presence and absence, in order to perpetuate the avant-garde myth of radical innovation and progress. 2
