Ann Noël: All we need is to keep a sense of humor — a conversation with Hanna B. Hölling, Aga Wielocha and Josephine Ellis

In this interview, artist Ann Noël reflects on her decades-long connection to Fluxus and her methods of documenting and preserving its legacy through visual diaries, storytelling and performance. The conversation explores the paradoxical relationship between impermanence and preservation within Fluxus works, exemplified by Noël’s ephemeral self-portraits created with anti-aging makeup, George Maciunas’s concept of vanishing ink and her management of her late husband Emmett Williams’s archive. Noël discusses various approaches to reperforming historical Fluxus pieces, emphasizing the importance of maintaining Fluxus’s playful spirit and sense of humor in contemporary art practices. She advocates for a hands-on approach to experiencing art, particularly artist’s books, which she believes should be touched and explored rather than displayed behind glass.