22 Mar. 2026

New Museum reopens with the exhibit New Humans: Memories of the Future, including Alison Knowles’s seminal work The House of Dust

Alison Knowles’s seminal work The House of Dust is part of the New Museum’s exhibition New Humans: Memories of the Future. The House of Dust is often considered one of the first computer-generated poems. Created by Alison Knowles in 1967, the work consists of a phrase “a house of” followed by a randomized sequence drawn from four lists: a material, a location situation, a light source, and a group of inhabitants. Each line produces a new, imagined structure. In 1968, Knowles translated one version of the poem into a sculpture in Chelsea turning the score into an open architectural space. Later reconstructed at CalArts, the house became a site for teaching, performance, and collaboration.

Alison Knowles’s granddaughter, Clara Joy, performed The House of Dust at KinoSaito on March 7, 2026, as part of the Opening Reception for the exhibition Alison Knowles: Secrets of Ordinary Things, on view through June 14, 2026. Other event scores created by Alison Knowles will be performed at KinoSaito on April 11, May 23, and June 14.

KinoSaito Patron Members and above receive free admission to the New Museum under our Mod/Co partnership. Their new exhibition comes with the opening of their new 60,000 square foot expansion.