Arleen Schloss obit

Arleen Schloss, performance artist and no wave icon, dead at 82

 

She was not on the list.

Arleen Schloss, the cult performance artist and painter famed for her involvement in the New York no wave scene, has died at the age of 82.

A key figure in New York’s underground art movement back in the 1970s, Schloss was at the centre of A’s – her legendary loft space that became a haven for outsider music, art, and performance. Without that space, in fact, the no wave scene, which revolutionised New York’s musical identity, might never have come to fruition.

It was within that hallowed loft that the likes of Glenn Branca, Suicide, Liquid Liquid, and countless other legendary no wave outfits honed their craft, for which Schloss’ art was a constant source of inspiration. At the peak of the A’s scene, Schloss’ groundbreaking performance art drew comparisons to the likes of Yoko Ono and Patti Smith.

Schloss passed away on May 23rd, and her death was announced on social media the following day by the makers of It’s A to Z, a documentary film dedicated to the artist.

“Arleen Schloss passed away last night after a long illness,” the post read, “She was in a hospice the last two weeks and the nurses took great care to make sure Arleen was comfortable.”

“According to her family,” the post continued, “she will receive a green burial at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery.” Adding, “There will be a celebration of her life in the near future.”

Shortly thereafter, the New York-based art collective Colab posted, “Our friend Arleen Schloss left the building on May 23rd,” before adding, “RIP strong woman.”

Following on from her days in the no wave scene, Schloss continued her work in the art world, becoming a noted curator, video director, and early supporter of digital art back in the 1990s. In 1989, she was even asked to work with the children’s television broadcaster Nickelodeon for the series Eureeka’s Castle, which went on to earn an award from the National Cable Television Association.

In her later years, Schloss worked as a board member for Art & Sciences Collaborations Inc. She became the subject of a film in 2024, with Stuart Ginsberg paying homage to her artistic impact in the film It’s A to Z: The Art of Arleen Schloss.

Today, her extensive body of work remains rooted in New York City, at various independent and underground galleries, including the New York Underground Museum and the MoMA. Artists and performers such as Glenn Branca, Y Pants, Jean-Michel Basquiat's noise music band Gray, solo performances by Eric Bogosian, Phoebe Legere's band Monad, pre-Sonic Youth Thurston Moore's post-punk band The Coachmen, Liquid Liquid, Carolee Schneemann, Alan Vega's band Suicide, Martin Wong, and Ai Weiwei performed, exhibited and got their start at A's. In the 1990s A's became A's Wave where early net art and other forms of digital art were shown.

A 2024 film by Stuart Ginsberg called IT'S A to Z: The ART OF ARLEEN SCHLOSS and a 2021 book by Baptiste Brévart, Guillaume Ettlinger, Guillaume Loizillon & Pauline Chevalier for Anamosa Books called Wednesday’s At A’s have documented Schloss's no wave period and her A's scene. Art historically, she has been associated with the Rivington School of art which was based on the Lower East Side of Manhattan