Abstract

Review of the artwork and essays created by conceptual and performance artist and philosopher Adrian Piper whose two-volume selected writings in meta-art and art criticism span 1968-1992. Addressing issues of "passing" and "crossing" for a woman of color and performing a male persona in public undergirds her explorations of identity, gender, and race. It is no coincidence that her deep commitment to making political art--in which the artist is an agent of social change--functions in tandem with her scholarly pursuits in Kantian ethics.