Just last week I was at kickboxing and I got talking with one of my trainers (Miguel) about art exhibits and right away we both said…MARINA! Marina Abramovic of course…my fave performance artist. She is absolutely amazing and when I think of her I think of her 2010 MoMA exhibit “The Artist Is Present”. This was the exact same exhibit that Miguel was thinking of and if you’ve seen you’ll understand why and if not allow me to explain.
During that exhibit, Marina sat in the middle of a room as people took turns to sit across from her. They sat in complete silence as they stared deep into each other’s eyes. She did this every single day from March 14th to May 31st. So many people came to be a part of it including actor James Franco and her past lover, Ulay who she was not expecting.
Marina Abramović and Ulay. Courtesy of the Louisiana Channel.
Now for the back story! Marina and Ulay were great lovers who met in the 70’s and were together for 12-years before they ended their relationship. In addition to being lovers, they also worked together as artists and so when they decided to end things they turned it into art. They began a 90-day journey that started on either end of the Great Wall of China and walked towards each other until they met in the middle for one last embrace. Pretty intense but for Marina and Ulay it totally made sense.
So what was it like when they were reunited? This is where the video comes in that Miguel and I were talking about. I dare you to watch it without feeling any type of emotion.
Pretty insane right?! It’s crazy to be able to see the connection and chemistry between the two of them. I have seen this video a million times and each time I watch it I get choked up. The crappy part is that shortly after this exhibit Ulay ended up suing Marina and things got ugly between. Luckily that did not last as they recently made up and are now back on talking terms.
Their story just makes you realize that love can be wonderful and brings you happiness, joy, and pleasure but it can also be painful, ugly and lonely.
If you want to check out more on Marina and Ulay then be sure to click here.