Australian artist Daniel Mudie Cunningham began Proud Mary in 2007 as a video performance series restaged every five years to document his ageing. To date, iterations have been produced in 2007, 2012, 2017 and 2022, with a fifth planned for 2027. Each iteration features Cunningham lip-syncing and dancing to Tina Turner’s version of “Proud Mary,” a song he has chosen for his own funeral. The work is held in the collection of the Museum of Old and New Art (Mona) in Tasmania, where it is regularly exhibited.

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Daniel Mudie Cunningham

Proud Mary at 32 in 2007

Daniel Mudie Cunningham

Proud Mary at 37 in 2012

Daniel Mudie Cunningham

Proud Mary at 42 in 2017

Daniel Mudie Cunningham

Proud Mary at 47 in 2022