a form of psychological blood-letting

Marina Abramović and Ulay (Frank Uwe Laysiepen) »

[EXCERPT] Footage posted: two performances from Relation Works, a collaborative series spanning 1976–1980 that tested the artists’ physical and psychological limitations, gender dynamics, and the notion of shared identity.

Art Vital Manifesto:

“No fixed living-place, permanent movement, direct contact, local relation, self-selection, passing limitations, taking risks, mobile energy, no rehearsal, no predicted end, no repetition, extended vulnerability, exposure to chance and primary reactions.”

GIF 1: Rest Energy (1980)

Widely considered one of the most physically perilous pieces of performance art ever recorded, this work was executed in Amsterdam over the course of 4 minutes and 10 seconds. In it, the artists utilize a lethal weapon to probe the limits of human trust, vulnerability, partnership, and interdependence. Small microphones were attached to both of their chests. The rapid, dramatic acceleration of their heartbeats and their irregular breathing were broadcast live to the room as the physical strain and psychological terror escalated.

GIF 2: Light/Dark (1977)

“Observing my clean, respectable image in the glass I open my mouth wide in an attempt to catch a glimpse of the Darkness within me, to spy it peeking out of me, slick and muscular and toothed, like a lamprey swallowed whole.” — Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito