Ulay first gained recognition from his collaborative performances with long-time partner Marina Abramović, which involved incredible feats of danger or endurance in the name of destroying their individual egos to create one single artistic entity.
After becoming a photographer for Polaroid in Amsterdam, Ulay moved into an exploration of his own identity, experimenting with cross-dressing, self-mutilation and giant “Polagram” images.
Richard Saltoun, the gallery representing the artist, mourned his loss in a statement: “Ulay was the freest of spirits – a pioneer and provocateur with a radically and historically unique oeuvre, operating at the intersection of photography and the conceptually oriented approaches of performance and body art. His passing leaves a momentous gap in the world – one that will not be so easily replaced.”
S'he, (1973-1974) from the series Renais sense © Ulay / collection of the artist (an edition from the series S'he's is part of the Rabo Art Collection)
