Introduction
Born of an affluent background, Marina Abramovic is one of the most celebrated and respected artists from the 1970s. Her performance in art has been exuberant. People have paid to see her performances of live art in galleries and streets. She is a performance artist who lives no covers unturned and has conjured pain in the process. Marina talks about different themes in her art. Perhaps one of the most endearing themes of exploration is love. Her relationship with her boyfriend Ulay was the focus of most people for half of her career, and she explored the theme in her performance with him. Marina’s art incorporates many stunts and aspects of art that result into something magical that has a realistic feel to it. She uses her femininity to progress an art that speaks of culture, love, and appreciation the body. She has often described performance art to be when an artist uses his mental and physical realm to engage in silent dialogue with their audience.
The theme of love and relationships, as depicted in most of her work, started being fully embraced when she met Ulay. They paired in 1976 and started making art that expressed feelings about male and female engagements, cultural affiliations, and so forth. Her performances with Ulay contained rawness in how love was portrayed. They showcased that relationships are founded upon trust and transparency (Otto, 2011). Literally, the nakedness in which they performed their art connected the audience to the transparency that they sought to communicate was needed in relationships. In most of their art, they have a connection that can be easily seen, and their silence speaks to their audience, which is one of the goals that Marina had in performing art. Most of the images on them are posed with silence or performance of different kinds of dangerous acts. An instance is where they suffocate each other by inhibiting oxygen entry and sucking carbon monoxide from each other’s mouths. The performance ended with both of them unconscious. It takes trust to perform such acts with somebody. The same trust is what they intended to depict love was about. The two performed an approximate of ninety acts together for the decade in which they were involved. The danger that some of the acts posed showed how much they loved each other.
The art that the two did together was a chronicle of their life together. Most of them showcased different cases and faces that relationships undergo. They had the romantic part, the part where they deeply felt for each other and that where they quarreled. The reason that the art between the two was appreciated was because of the reality it professed. Because of the fact, the audience could identify their relationships with the art that the two performed. They intended to communicate that relationships were beautiful but had bumps. One of the arts showcases them screaming at each other. Most people in relationships would identify with that in a deeper sense than if they had solely showcased their bliss. Marina and Ujay were performing an honest part of their lives (Stiles, Abramović, Biesenbach & Iles, 2008). Relationships have struggles that their art intended to communicate. They had their whirlwind romance too, but they communicated, albeit in silence, that there was more in the deep waters than what the surface offered. Their togetherness reverberated through most of their work where they held hands, tied their hair together and did nude art performance in togetherness. They also highlighted this through a representation of how male and female bodies interact. Their expressions, body postures and mannerisms in all the art they did have an aura of a couple that had chemistry and were comfortable with each other. Their nude art performance was characterized by an influx of viewers. The case was so because of the manner in which they performed. There was never the slightest hint of shame or plastic expressions. They all have a connection that can be felt by an audience that looks at their performance. From the expressions they had, it leaves no doubt that Ujay and Marina were comfortable and intimate with each other. Clearly, they understood each other’s body, and that made them relate to the audience in a better way (ROOKIE, 2014). Such art included pieces like Imponderabilia that was done in 1976, which consisted of the two standing naked at the entrance to a museum. The comfort and interactions they had with one another made the audience who were going to the museum comfortable too. The people had to pass through their naked bodies before they got into the museum.
Romantic artist stories often involve the clichés of how artists met and settled. However, Marina and Ujay told of the real happenings in relationships. Just like Marina observed, art should reflect on the lives of the audience and teach them something. They informed the audience on the complexities of male and female relationships and what they should entail. The undeniably amazing part is that they gave lessons on relationships without saying a word. From how they represented their art, one could tell the realness they had with each other. They helped create art that spoke to the issues that come up when two people join forces, and also the magic that could happen. Even their break up was an artistic testing of their strength and abilities. They walked through the Great Wall of China and said goodbye when they met halfway. The above mentioned are the reasons I consider the couple to be the most realistic symbols of relationships in the history of the romantic engagements of performing artists.
Marina started practicing art in her home country in Serbia. Her first acts were done to test her limits and know the edge with which she could gamble. The near brutal acts are what led to the rise of a talented and fearless performer in history. She taped herself stabbing the space between her fingers in an electric speed. Mariana attested to being in excruciating pain for most of these acts but was determined to push her limits. I suppose that the acts made her daring and led to her trial at the different aspects of performance art. Because she had been through the worst, there was nothing that was left to fear. She had stabbed herself with knives and had been mutilated by a public that she invited to taunt her skills. Therefore, Marina has risen to experiment a lot of things in her art. Her silent art is not silent in metaphorical terms because when a viewer looks at her performance, there is a screaming of many concepts and feelings. She invokes a sense of thinking that art ought to invoke, which makes the art as loud as any other. Art is daring. It is a way in which the artist communicates with the viewer without saying anything. In most times, Marina just sat there. She did not speak, but her words can be heard in a silent dialogue. Her art could move even the emotionally crippled, and that is what made her special. Evidence points to people weeping or laughing or only looking at her in a fascination that highlighted the awe they felt towards the art. The same is the case with any other audience. It is hard to look at the portrait without feeling any emotion. Most artists perform but would never experience the beauty of connection. That is what made her a favorite and arguably the most talented one in her generation of artists.
Her performances have appeared in many galleries across Europe and America. When Marina is in play, it will take a person with an in depth understanding and appreciation of the profound meaning of art for them to see her point. Marina was not well received in Serbia, but people flocked galleries to look at her and were moved to the point of tears. I think an understanding of art is paramount for a connection with the works of Marina. When she does performances that showcase her nudity, it is that same knowledge that will help one to connect to the deeper meaning because she does not explain. She lets her body and mind create a dialogue with the viewer. She expresses the freedom that nature afforded the body. It is as though she is imploring people to exercise less restraint on their bodies because they are a gift of nature. From the way she represents nude art performance, she tries to argue the viewer to be less ashamed of the body that is naturally theirs for there is no shame in that. Her art is also a way of showcasing the beauty of femininity and encouraging women to embrace what they have because it is intriguing. An example is the Stambolli Pieta picture that comprises of her in nudeness carrying another woman as she stares into the heavens (Burton, 2006). The gesture is a sign of freedom for the women who feel like their bodies are what they were given and are thankful for it. Art, of any form, depends heavily on expressions. It is those expressions that can make a difference in the school of thought of the viewer. Expression in this sense does not typically denote facial signs. It refers to what elements the piece of art has that makes it unique and helps the viewer to identify and substantially relate to the theme. The expressions are how the art is represented and its point of emphasis. The art of Marina is full of feeling, especially when she embraces her naturalness in a raw manner that makes her work even more intriguing without having to speak. The work is not only fascinating, but is also sensitizing people about the issues that they should appreciate in their lives. Art is the freedom a performer has to use nature freely to express what is in their heads and hearts. In my opinion, Marin is one of those expressive artists.
In addition, she uses an eroticism to exercise the degree of freedom that is allowed in art. What Abramovic appears to be saying in her images is that performance art can be used to showcase anything that can be expressed. It can be used to show the love that exists among people; it can be used to highlight cultural aspects, and it can also be used to express sexual freedom. One of the erotic performances that she has done is called the Balkan Erotic detail that was done in 2005. One adaptation of the art entails a group of women in half naked shirts clinging to their chests and performing what appears to be an erotic ritual. There is also a similar image where Mariana is alone and is doing the same thing. The images are loaded with sexual innuendo that is being freely practiced. It is through such performances that she explores the extremes of art and takes the same approach in all her other works. She urges people to practice the same kind of liberated freedom and keep from living in an enclosed state because there is no shame in what nature has provided. It appears that Marina wanted to communicate silently that those things that were provided for by nature are supposed to be pure. Therefore, expressing them would not amount to something that is wrong. The same image was performed in the rain and mixed the theme of freedom of expression with that of nature. The women were seen to be performing all kinds of erotic dances while the rain was falling.
Marina is special because she is the type of artist that could perform any theme and move her audience. She recreates these themes according to the events in place at a time. Society changes and even the culture and practices of the people shift depending on things such as modernity and technology. Marina observed in an interview that a change was inevitable. Consequentially, she noted that artists needed to change the way their art was done to suit the times in place. The change included exploring different themes or using different methods to do so. Because of this, Marina explores the themes and represents the times that are in place. She has lived through decades and has seen the cultures transform, leading to the overhaul of the art industry. For instance, she does art about war, freedom of women, and family (Aull, 2010). The aspect of technology is also showcased in some of her arts. In one image that is titled the family, that was adopted in 2008 and can be traced in the Krinzinger gallery; she is dressed in a military uniform and is carrying many guns. The same image has been given a different illustration where she poses in military uniforms in the company of many children. The image intends to communicate how the family and war are involved pursuant to the many orphans that have been created because of wars. In her way, she related all the events that took place in the society and affected the people. Her acts were not just based on such instances alone. Technology was also represented when she used certain tools as props for her acts.
The “grandmother of performance art” has been epic in showing people the possibilities that the mind can achieve. Her taught is centered on channeling the body and the mind while communicating with an audience. Most of the things that she does in her performances are premised on what the mind can achieve when concentration is in play. An instance is where the artist used unconsciousness as a part of the performance. The state of unconsciousness was the art that was being performed and was achieved through the rhythmic control of the body. The performance is known as rhythm 2 and was performed in 1974. She achieved this by ingesting a pill that is medically meant to cause immobility to the muscles of the body. Her body remained lucid for hours, while her mind was not present. Her performance intended to show the power that the mind has in controlling body movements. As she established, the mind was not only right in controlling movement, but thoughts that influenced an action. It is through the mind that she conjured her audience into following and relating to the things that she said. In addition, Marina intended to communicate that the mind is powerful in establishing the limits that are accrued to the body. She often tested all levels of pain that her body could take and channeled her mind into registering a certain degree of pain (Abramović Biesenbach, 2010). That is the only way that she could have survived some of the stunts that she performed. Her first act got her many injuries because she allowed people to mutilate her in a way that they pleased. It is living in the extremes of art that made Marina what she is today.
Marina establishes that the art she performs in a mixture of everything. It is mixed with science, emotional senses, the body and the spirit. They all have a paramount part to play in how the events will turn out. Without a sure connection with all these aspects, the beauty of the art would remain dead. The art that she performed, especially when she was with Ulay, was meant to incorporate all this aspects to teach people something. It was a form of teaching, but on different subjects that most people of which most people would never be aware (Abramovic & Abramović, 1998). For example, they taught people about the science of exhaling another person’s carbon dioxide. They did so through the breathing in/breathing performance. In other instances, she single-handedly taught people on the issues of pressure as it related to concentration and body movement. The educative aspects of it are not the only lessons she gives. Marina has worked with famous people like Lady Gaga in various ways (Brockes, 2014). An example was when she gave her tips on performance art that could help her in her smoking problem. Marina is, therefore, not just an art performer, but somebody who uses art as a way of sharing with people the beauty and knowledge that was hidden behind it. She performed art to express a purpose. Most of the performances would make a person cringe, but they were still beautiful be all performance art standards. I especially liked her raw representation of things.
Conclusion
Marina is a legend in the field of performance art and in the lives of the people who have seen her perform her cats. What is surprising is that for ten years, the legend lived in a van with her lover because of poverty. She practices art for the love she had as opposed to the need to make a living. Her art lives on since the seventies and gets better as she proceeds. People would be expecting other jaw breaking performances in acts that are silent, but speak to the soul. All in All, Marina Abramovic has made her mark as an artist of the seventies.
References
Abramovic, M., & Abramović, V. (1998). Marina Abramovic: Artist body performances 1969-1998. Milano: Charta.
Abramović, M., Biesenbach, K., & Museum of Modern Art (New York, N.Y.). (2010). Marina Abramović: The artist is present. New York: Museum of Modern Art.
Aull, F. (2010). The performance of the artist Marina Abramović in the MoMA - Museum of Modern Art, N.Y. as a mirror of zeitgeist: [term paper "The artist is present" in the seminar "Performing arts and spectacles in a contemporary multicultural world", SS 2010, Europauniversität Viadrina, Frankfurt/Oder]. München: GRIN-Verl
Brockes, E. (2014, May 12). Performance artist Marina Abramović: 'I was ready to die' The Guardian.
Burton, J. (2006, January 1). Repeat Performance: Johanna Burton on Marina Abramovic's Seven Easy Pieces. Artforum International.
Hero Status: Marina and Ulay. Together in art. (2014, January 1). ROOKIE.
Mana Contemporary Teams with the Marina Abramovic Institute. (2014, June 5). Entertainment Close-up.
Otto, E. (2011, September 22). When Marina Abramovic Dies: A Biography.(Marina Abramovic: The Artist is Present)(Book review). Woman's Art Journal.
Stiles, K., Abramović, M., Biesenbach, K., & Iles, C. (2008). Marina Abramović. London: Phaidon.
