The Cuban visual artist Ana Mendieta (1948-1985) is one of the outstanding artistic positions of the 1970s and 1980s. Her work moves freely between the disciplines of body art, land art and performance art, without being bound to a particular medium or single movement. The connecting element across her practice is the recurring use of the abstracted shape of the female form, often in dialogue with the natural world – not least to question the supposed separation of nature and the body.

Mendieta’s work transcends numerous boundaries, from those of geographical and political space, to the delineations of history, gender and culture. From 20 April to 22 July 2018 the exhibition Covered in Time and History: The Films of Ana Mendieta at Gropius Bau shows 23 of Mendieta’s multi-layered film works, which after several years of research have been restored and digitised.

An exhibition organised by the Katherine E. Nash Gallery at the University of Minnesota | Curated by Lynn Lukkas and Howard Oransky | Made possible by the Capital Cultural Fund.

View of the exhibition “Covered in Time and History: Die Filme von Ana Mendieta”, Gropius Bau, Berlin, 2018. © The Estate of Ana Mendieta Collection, LLC.,Courtesy Galerie Lelong & Co. Foto: Mathias Völzke.

Ana Mendieta, Creek, 1974. Super 8 Film. © The Estate of Ana Mendieta Collection, LLC.,Courtesy Galerie Lelong & Co.

View of the exhibition “Covered in Time and History: Die Filme von Ana Mendieta”, Gropius Bau, Berlin, 2018. Foto: C&AL.

Ana Mendieta, Sweating Blood, 1973, Super 8 Film. © The Estate of Ana Mendieta Collection, LLC.,Courtesy Galerie Lelong & Co.

View of the exhibition “Covered in Time and History: Die Filme von Ana Mendieta”, Gropius Bau, Berlin, 2018. Foto: C&AL.