Trisha Brown: Walking on the Wall (1971)

By having an ensemble of seven dancers walk along the museum wall with the aid of ropes and body harnesses, Brown challenged the perceived laws of the performing arts with a simple yet radical gesture. Whilst the virtuoso defiance of vertical gravity is often the visual highlight in classical ballet, Brown changed the rules of the game by inverting the forces of gravity – and raises questions about the standardisation of movement sequences and at what point a movement becomes dance or performance.

At the Neue Nationalgalerie, ‘Walking on the Wall’ unfolds new layers of meaning in interplay with Mies van der Rohe’s glass façade.

Trisha Brown (1936–2017) was one of the most influential choreographers of her time. As a co-founder of the Judson Dance Theatre, she contributed to a wave of interdisciplinary creativity that came to define 1960s New York. Over the course of her career, Brown created more than 100 choreographies and six operas.

Her ‘Equipment Pieces’ – including ‘Man Walking Down the Side of a Building’ (1970) – radically expanded the concept of dance to encompass questions of gravity and everyday space.

PERFORM! 2026

The 5th Performance Art Festival at the Neue Nationalgalerie

PERFORM! is curated by Klaus Biesenbach, Director of the Neue Nationalgalerie, together with Lisa Botti, curator at the Neue Nationalgalerie, and Gregor Quack, Volkswagen Group Curator.

• The American Academy in Berlin is a partner of PERFORM! 2026.

Venue: Terrace of the Neue Nationalgalerie