Marina Abramovic : The Artist is Present.
WOW. Just, WOW. This is the best and most interesting documentary I never planned on seeing. The Serbian born Marina Abramovic has been challenging and conquering Performance Art for many decades. From driving around in a van for 16 hours yelling numbers through a megaphone, to mutilating herself for the sake of art she has performed her way to the top of the mountain and has garnered critical acclaim along the way. Performance emerged in the 60’s as a result of a challenged painting. It was something you didn’t’ hang on a wall. Many of her works were interventions. She would sit still and let people use objects on her, and giving the viewers/participants a role in the art. This type of interaction proved how fast the audience can get unhinged if you let them, revealing a type of group mentality in human nature. However I think the most pivotal part of the documentary involved her ex-lover and co-creator, Ulay. They met in 1976 and formed a strong partnership personally and professionally. 12 years later they ended their relationship by walking to eachother from each end of the Great Wall of China. Each walked approximately 2500km’s. In her 2010 at her MoMa retrospective, Abramovic performed The Artist Is Present. Here she shared a period of silence with each stranger who sat in front of her. She did this for 3 long, tiresome months. And she was steadfast. When Ulay came and sat in front of her, she had a deeply emotional reaction and reached across the table where they held hands. THIS was highly emotional which had me bawling. I was BAWLING. Going forward I will keep tabs on her. Even though she is 70 I feel like she has so much more to offer, and I am now one of her fans. Now, excuse me while I carve an image of Tinky-Winky into my torso and go and stand naked in a Discount Tire…
