Barbara Hammer: Evidentiary Bodies

Barbara Hammer is an American feminist artist known as a pioneer of queer experimental and documentary film. In concert with an exhibition of her work at the Leslie Homan Museum of Gay & Lesbian Art, this volume seeks to celebrate the depth and expanse of Hammer’s five decades of art making.

Bringing together both known and previously unseen works of film and video, installations, works on paper, and material from her archive, this volume addresses critical themes that appear throughout Hammer’s work, including sensation and intimacy, lesbian representation, and the maintenance of illness, in addition to exploring the artist’s relationship to experimental queer cinema, feminist history, and environmental activism. Featuring a wide range of responses, from personal anecdotes to academic analysis and poetic interpretation, this volume highlights the resonating impact of Hammer’s artistic narrative across cinema studies, art history, queer theory, and feminist thought.