This past week I got the opportunity to visit the Stedelijk Museum when traveling to Amsterdam during Spring Break. The Stedelijk Museum is a renowned contemporary and modern art museum holding pieces surrounding photography, painting, installations, sculptures, and more from the 20th and 21st centuries. Previous to being in Amsterdam, I didn’t even know this museum existed until I saw a flier for the Marina Abramović exhibit, which made me intrigued to attend. While we had tickets for both the exhibit and the museum as a whole (which was all amazing to see), I’m going to focus on Marina Abramović, her exhibit, and her career as a performance artist.
Marina Abramović was born in 1946 in Belgrade, Serbia. Abramović’s career began in the 1970’s, and is well known as one of the founders of performance art as a medium. She uses her body and endurance of pain, danger, and exhaustion as a means of expression, and pushes many boundaries in the art world. Her performances aren’t for everyone and can definitely be seen as violent and uncomfortable, but I think that is purposeful and partially the point of most of her work. In one of her many interviews, she described her work: “There are so many different forms of art, performance is one of the most difficult, the most immaterial, and the most real”. She strives to challenge herself and her viewers as a way of exploring herself, other people, energy, and her spirituality. Marina’s work is intense, but after viewing her exhibit and learning more about her I very much respect her as a person and artist.
Pictured above are the remnants from one of Abramović’s most famous pieces that was shown at the exhibit in Amsterdam, titled “Rhythm 0”. The performance occurred in 1974 taking place at the Studio Morra in Naples, Italy. This performance involved 72 items on a table, from a feather, to a rose, to a hat, to even a gun; Abramović acted as the subject, where she invited the audience to use any of these items on her, giving her personal consent to whatever could occur. It lasted for 6 hours until it got too violent and invasive. The purpose of this from her perspective was to test human limits, explore her vulnerability, and to explore power dynamics between her and her audience.
Another one of her infamous performances was showcased at this exhibit. This was called “The Artist is Present”, which occurred in 2010 at New York City’s Museum of Modern Art. This performance took place for over three months, where she sat motionless across from various people who came to sit with her. The performance involved energy exchanges with rules forbidding any speaking or touching. This piece drew large crowds, and exhibited a powerful example of human connection. Something I found quite interesting about this performance when researching it afterwards was her breaking the rules with someone from her life. Her previous partner Ulay, in love and art, came to this performance after twenty years of separation. When he came and sat with her, the emotions came running back and she broke the rules and grabbed his hands. I think this was a really powerful testament to her work and this piece specifically.
There are so many components, observations, and theories surrounding Marina Abramović’s art. This exhibit was one of the most interesting, unique, and cool forms of expression I’ve seen maybe ever. If you happen to be in Amsterdam this Spring, I highly recommend visiting. Thank you for reading, and I can’t wait to share some more with you guys next week!
