Vito Acconci, pioneering conceptual artist and architect, passed away today at the age of 77. After starting his career as a poet, Acconci gained recognition for his influential performance and video works. A man of many parts, he then transitioned into working with audio/visual installations before beginning to work primarily as a landscape architect and designer.

During the early ‘80s, Acconci created works like Instant House, a sculpture that assembles into an inhabitable structure when a person sits on a swing, with each interior wall covered in an American flag, and on each exterior wall, a Soviet flag. In 1983, Acconci made his first permanent installation, Way Station I (Study Chamber) at Middleburg College, a sculpture so controversial (it likewise juxtaposed the flags of capitalist countries with communist states) that it was burned down. Later, it was reinstalled.

By the late ‘80s, Acconci had founded Acconci Studio and focused on designing furniture as well as theoretical design and building. Among his most notable projects are Murinsel, a floating platform on the Mur river in Austria, and Walkways Through the Wall, an installation in the Midwest Airlines Center in Milwaukee. For architects, his most recognizable work might be the Storefront for Art and Architecture in Manhattan, a collaboration with Steven Holl.

Acconci’s built work is known for blurring the line between public and private space, as well as its concern for temporality. “Architecture is not about space but about time,” he once stated. “Architecture is the opposite of an image.”

Alongside his work as an artist and architect, Acconci was also a teacher. He taught at several institutions, including the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, the Copper Union, Yale University, and, most recently, Brooklyn College and Pratt Institute.

Thomas Hanrahan, Dean of Pratt School of Architecture, had this to say: "Vito was a world renowned artist, an inspiring teacher and a member of the Pratt community dearly loved by students and faculty alike. His work had a unique, interdisciplinary dimension combining performance, sculpture and architecture and has been exhibited worldwide including at the Pratt Manhattan Gallery. Appointed as adjunct professor to Graduate Architecture and Urban Design (GAUD) in 2009, Vito taught numerous disciplines while opening students' minds to new methods of design and personal research. Vito was a special presence in the School of Architecture and I know I speak for all students and faculty in saying that he will be sorely missed."

From Vito Acconci / Acconci Studio: Interiors. Buildings. Parks. by Julia Loktev (via UbuWeb)