Monica Ross (1950–2013) was a British artist, academic, and feminist. Her career producing feminist works spanned four decades. She is notable particularly for her contributions to

performance art Performance art is an artwork or art exhibition created through actions executed by the artist or other participants. It may be witnessed live or through documentation, spontaneously developed or written, and is traditionally presented to a pu ...

, which reflected her passion for social change and were displayed in such diverse places as public libraries and

Greenham Common Royal Air Force Greenham Common or more simply RAF Greenham Common is a former Royal Air Force station in the civil parishes of Greenham and Thatcham in the English county of Berkshire. The airfield was southeast of Newbury, about west of Lo ...

. These works were often collaborative, with Ross contributing to the establishment both of the seminal Women's Postal Art Event and Sister Seven. The culminating work of her career and life was ''Anniversary – an act of memory: solo, collective and multi-lingual recitations from memory of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights'', a 5-year extended performance work which involved the recitation of the

Universal Declaration of Human Rights The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is an international document adopted by the United Nations General Assembly that enshrines the Human rights, rights and freedoms of all human beings. Drafted by a UN Drafting of the Universal D ...

by heart. Ross also worked in video, drawing, installation, and text.

Early life

Monica Ross was born in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

, England, on 26 November 1950.

Artistic career

Ross began her career as a feminist artist and organiser. She took an active role in mounting collective initiatives such as ''Feministo: Representations of the Artist as Housewife'', a 1977 women's postal art event, and ''Fenix'', a 1978–1980 touring project. In 1980, she co-founded Sister Seven, a distribution network for poster art and shows held in churches, libraries,

peace camp Peace camps are a form of physical protest camp that is focused on anti-war and anti-nuclear activity. They are set up outside military military base, bases by members of the peace movement who oppose either the existence of the military bases the ...

s, and on the street. The culminating work of her career and life was ''Anniversary – an act of memory: solo, collective and multi-lingual recitations from memory of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights'', an extended performance work which involved the recitation of the

, learnt by heart. Launched by Ross in 2008, the thirty articles were intended to be delivered in sixty instalments to mark the sixtieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The sixtieth and final recital took place at the 23rd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on 14 June 2013. On the same day she died in a hospice in

Hove Hove ( ) is a seaside resort in East Sussex, England. Alongside Brighton, it is one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove. Originally a fishing village surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th century in respon ...

, only a few weeks after being diagnosed with

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

Academic career

Ross began teaching in 1985. Her academic positions included Senior Lecturer on Fine Art at London's

Saint Martins School of Art Saint Martin's School of Art was an art school, art college in London, England. It offered foundation and degree level courses. It was established in 1854, initially under the aegis of the church of St Martin-in-the-Fields. Saint Martin's beca ...

(now Central Saint Martins) from 1985 to 1990, and supervisor of the Critical Fine Art Practice course at that school from 1990 to 1998. She was a guest professor at the ''Institut für Kunst in Kontext'' ( Universität der Künste, Berlin) in 2004 and an

Arts and Humanities Research Council The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), formerly Arts and Humanities Research Board (AHRB), is a British research council, established in 1998, supporting research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities. History The Arts a ...

Research Fellow in Fine Art at

Newcastle University Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is a red brick university and a mem ...

from 2001 to 2004. In 2014, the year following her death, a digital archive of Ross's work from the 1970s through 2013 was acquired by the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom. Based in London, it is one of the largest libraries in the world, with an estimated collection of between 170 and 200 million items from multiple countries. As a legal deposit li ...

, which described her as "one of the most significant feminist artists and distinguished educators of her generation".

Legacy

The Monica Ross Action Group (MRAG) was established in 2013, following her death, to ensure that new audiences benefitted from her legacy. The group undertakes projects with the professed aim "to make visible Monica's invaluable contribution to contemporary practice, expand an understanding of the nature and impact of her long-standing radical practice, and demonstrate how her work is crucially relevant to a contemporary reassessment of feminist performance practice and theory". As of 2015, the Monica Ross Action Group consisted of artists Susan Hiller, Suzanne Treister, and Anne Tallentire, as well as partner Bernard Mills and daughter Alice Ross. The group was responsible for the organisation of
Monica Ross: A Symposium
, which took place at the British Library on Friday 28 November 2014.

References

External links

Anniversary — an act of memory: Act 01 Monica Ross"
7 December 2008 video
"Interviews: Monica Ross"

Artforum ''Artforum'' is an international monthly magazine specializing in contemporary art. The magazine is distinguished from other magazines by its unique 10½ × 10½ inch square format, with each cover often devoted to the work of an artist. Notably ...