Marina Abramovic is a popular Serbian artist best known for her innovative approaches and unusual performances. It was announced that 2023 is the year when an exhibition of Abramovic will take place in the Royal Academy of Arts in London. In the last few years, two shows got cancelled, but now it is certain that the exhibition will be organized.
The event will be the first retrospective of Marina that will be held in the United Kingdom. People will see creations from the very beginning of her career, as well as her latest ones. Apart from photographs and objects, visitors will be given the amazing opportunity to enjoy some of Abramovic’s performances executed by other actors.
Who Exactly Is Marina Abramovic?
Marina Abramovic was born in 1946 and is considered one of the most prominent performance and conceptual artists of all time. What makes her different from the rest of the artists who have specialized in the field is that Abramovic likes the extremes. One of her most well-known performances, named Rhythm 0, has been reviewed by thousands of artists all around the world. We’ll focus a bit more on the project in one of the upcoming paragraphs. But now, let’s focus on Marina’s career and how it started.
Early Career of Abramovic as An Artist
Marina did not have a childhood every kid would dream of. However, this didn’t stop her from developing an unconditional love for art. The female artist studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Belgrade. The capital of Serbia and Amsterdam were some of the first places where Marina put on some of her earliest performances. The artist was also a visiting professor at several academies and universities, which contributed to her popularization.
Her very first shows were welcomed with great interest and respect. It didn’t take her long to become famous, and in 1974, her most popular project called Rhythm 0 became reality. People still talk about it today, and devotees of performance art are completely mesmerized by Abramovic’s work. Rhythm 10, however, was her very first performance that took place in Edinburgh.
The year was 1973, and Abramovic was to explore the potential of a person’s limits when it comes to mental and physical pain. During the performance, Marina played the well-known Knife Game, also known as the Russian Game. It all resulted in Abramovic stabbing herself 20 times while recording everything. In the end, she tried to re-do the whole process, attempting to recreate the same sounds, mistakes, and movements.
Some of the Most Popular Performances of Marina Abramovic
As aforementioned, Rhythm 0 is one of the most notable works of Abramovic. The reason why it’s so famous even today, after more than 50 years since its development, is the fact that the entire process is said to be unusual, extreme, risky, and thought-inspiring. For this performance, Marina decided to take the role of the main character.
Guests were given the option to choose between 72 objects. They were permitted to do anything they wanted to Marina; she would not stop them regardless of their actions. At first, people were gentle, and there was nothing worrying about their actions. However, after some time, people started going a bit too far.
At the end of the show, Marina’s clothes were cut off, and she had a bloody mark on her neck made with a knife. What Marina wanted to explore via this performance was how far a person could go if there were no future consequences for their actions. The artist shared that, at some point, she felt quite threatened and was certain that some of the people there might have killed her.
The show was six hours long, and after the end of it, Abramovic stood up and started walking among the guests. Most of them couldn’t look her in the eye, and eventually, all of them left the place in less than a few minutes. We believe it’s quite obvious why this project is so notable and how important it actually is. A few other works that gained quite the popularity are the following:
- Cleaning the Mirror
- Rhythm 4
- Balkan Baroque
- Seven Easy Pieces
- The Artist Is Present
- Spirit Cooking
- Rhythm 2
Further Information about the Retrospection of Abramovic’s Work in London
The entire exhibition will be conformable to the work of Marina Abramovic. Some of her performances will be recreated by other artists, and Marina herself will be part of the talks programme. The event will take place in the Royal Academy of Arts in London, which means that a considerable number of visitors will be able to enjoy the show.
The arrangers have promised to work towards creating an atmosphere that feels intense and somehow uneasy. The reason being is that both of these adjectives are closely related to the overall concept of Marina Abramovic’s performances. Those who show interest in her art know that the female artist likes to explore people’s physical and mental limitations.
Through her projects, Marina wanted to convey important messages, and she definitely succeeded in her endeavours. She is known as the Grandmother of Performance art, and she’s the founder of the Marina Abramovic Institute. Devotees of her art are advised to keep an eye on any news released by the Royal Academy of Arts with respect to the 2023 exhibition.
