Joan Jonas, Tate Modern review ★★★★★

Performance art is all about atmosphere: the live interaction between performer and audience creates a drama that can't be felt looking at a canvas. The Tate Modern pays tribute to this art form in a radical new retrospective of pioneering artist Joan Jonas. This is an emotionally charged exhibition that rewards a persistent viewer despite the initial strangeness of the art itself.

Joan Jonas has been a huge influence on performance and video art since the late 1960s and is now considered to be major force in the contemporary art world. Her work is brought to life in two complementary immersive exhibitions at the Tate which include live performances, videos and objects.

The Tate retrospective is an exhibition of two halves: Joan Jonas takes place in a conventional exhibition space whilst Ten Days Six Nights is in the Tanks, Tate Modern's subterranean gallery space dedicated to championing live experimentation. Together these provide a multi-dimensional survey of the artist's career. Jonas’s work is difficult: it asks that we take time to look at it, and often there are no easy explanations. Even though Jonas's world feels strange, the Tate exhibition manages to make us feel part of her space, immersed in soundscapes and visuals.

Joan Jonas opens and closes with intimate moments: we enter into Jonas's studio full of her personal objects and leave after watching her at home in a dressing gown on a micro-screen (My New Theatres VI' Good Night, Good Morning '06). This is done with the hope of generating an emotional response from the viewer: we thought it worked well as we felt physically included in the exhibition.

Also look out for the astonishing red room dedicated to Stream or River, Flight or Pattern, Jonas’s most recent work focusing on travel. Three colourful videos play simultaneously as bird-like kites are suspended from the ceiling. The sensual stimulation is heightened by the choice to keep this room text-free.

Masks (various), Room 1: Joan Jonas's studio

To see the ‘live’ element inherent to Jonas’s work head underground to the BMW Tate Live Exhibition 2018: Ten Days Six Nights. Taking place in the Tanks, BMW Tate Live showcases a combination of installations, live performances and ground-breaking works by Jonas and younger artists who have been influenced by her work. This cavernous space is perfect for showcasing Jonas’ work: the only light in the room is from the reflection of crystals and the videos on screens. The atmosphere is tangible.

Joan Jonas and Ten Days Six Nights celebrates the ground-breaking experimentation of the world's most famous living performance artist. It’s a spectacle that requires us to be creative and open-minded. Great emphasis is placed by Jonas herself on re-presentation and re-creation – this reinvention of her work at the Tate makes for an experience that feels current and alive.

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As part of Ten Days Six Nights there will be daily live performances on various dates between 16 – 25 March. Some of these will be performed by Joan Jonas herself. Click here to see the full schedule.