Robert Wilson, a leading American director of the postwar era, died on July 31 at his home in Watermill, New York. He was 83. Known as a master of experimental theater and an innovator in the visual arts, Wilson challenged the redefinition of space, light, and time through more than 200 experimental works in theater and opera over a career spanning more than 60 years.
He was born in Waco, Texas. He grew up in a conservative family and is said to have struggled with his homosexuality during his youth. He studied business administration at the University of Texas and moved to New York, where he was influenced by choreographers George Balanchine and Martha Graham. He earned a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the Pratt Institute and became an assistant to architect Philip Johnson.
In 1968, he established the experimental performance company Bird Hoffman School of Birds in the Soho district. In the 1970s, he entered the world of opera, collaborating with composer Philip Glass and choreographer Lucinda Childs to produce “Einstein on the Beach”, which established his international reputation.
From the early stages of his career, he has built a unique world through a non-naturalistic approach that blends Eastern elements and painterly expressions, such as actors’ movements that are close to stillness, simple stage design, and cool color tones. He has created numerous renowned productions at major opera houses around the world.
He has also collaborated with various artists, writers, and musicians, including Tom Weyts, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Allen Ginsberg, Laurie Anderson, Tilda Swinton, Jim Jarmusch, and Lady Gaga. In 1991, he became artistic director of the Watermill Center, an arts institute he founded on the eastern tip of Long Island, New York, where he was involved in nurturing young artists.
He has been nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and has received numerous other awards, including the Laurence Olivier Award and the Golden Lion Award at the Venice Biennale. In 2023, he was awarded “Praemium Imperiale” in the Theater and Film category.
PHOTO：Davide Colombino
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