Ben Patterson

Fluxus, Conceptual, Intermedial, Art with Architecture

Ben (Benjamin) Patterson was born in 1934 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. He received a Bachelor's degree in music at the University of Michigan in 1956. From 1957-59 Ben Patterson played double bass in various orchestras such as the Symphony Orchestra of Halifax, N.S. (Canada), 7th US Army Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart, Symphony Orchestra of Ottawa (Canada). In 1959/60 he came to Cologne, to extend his studies with the new music of Stockhausen, which failed because of mutual incomprehension. He made acquaintance with an musician who also failed on the new music, Nam June Paik, and with other artists such as Cage, Cunningham, Tudor, Vostell and Mary Bauermeister. In their studio readings and concerts of the "Newest music" (neo-Dada) took place including with Paik, Patterson and other 'radical' artists, which became the basis of the later fluxus movement. From 1962-63 he went to Paris and met Daniel Spoerri and Robert Filliou and organized a "Fluxus-Sneak-Preview". During his stay in New York in the years 1963-65 he worked as a librarian at the New York Public Library, Lincoln Center and participated in many Fluxus events, such as "Yam Day". He published "American studies: Seminar II" (Something else Press) or organised the event "New music, dance and theatre". In 1967, he achieved his master of science at the Columbia University.

Since 1960, he has had a variety of exhibitions, actions, performances etc in museums and galleries all over the world. After his temporary withdrawal from the art he had his first solo exhibition in our gallery in 1990, which was followed by three more as well as many actions and investments.

From 1992 to 1994, he received a guest professorship at the Academy of fine arts in Hamburg and was a guest lecturer at the University of California and at Carnegie-Mellon University in Pittsburgh.

Ben Patterson died in Wiesbaden in 2016.