Barbara T. Smith, "With Love from A to B" (1977)

Created with Nancy Buchanan, "With Love from A to B" was initially a video performance for the 1977 College Art Association convention. Smith had the idea of using "the framing edge [of the screen] to initiate all action, with the center field more or less empty." In the video, Smith's hands act as a suitor courting buchanan's hands, who do not return the suitor's love. The original piece ended with Smith controversially cutting her own finger--a choice she later regretted and re-shot so that the violence was only implied.
This video is part of the Barbara T. Smith papers at the Getty Research Institute. View the finding aid for Smith's archive: primo.getty.edu/permalink/f/1...
Barbara T. Smith: The Way to Be is on view at the Getty Research Institute from February 28, 2023 through July 16, 2023. Learn more: www.getty.edu/research/exhibi...