1y ago

TIL of RHYTHM 0 : A performance art piece in which Marina Abramović stood still for six hours while the audience could do whatever they wanted to her.

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Instructions: There are 72 objects on the table that one can use on me as desired.

Performance: I am the object. During this period I take full responsibility.

Duration: 6 hours (8pm–2am.) Studio Morra, Naples

156 comments

As Abramović described it later: "What I learned was that ... if you leave it up to the audience, they can kill you ... I felt really violated: they cut up my clothes, stuck rose thorns in my stomach, one person aimed the gun at my head, and another took it away. It created an aggressive atmosphere. After exactly 6 hours, as planned, I stood up and started walking toward the audience. Everyone ran away, to escape an actual confrontation."
I swear so many people are actual psychopaths and just good at hiding it.
- A lot of people aren't even good at hiding it, their traits are just seen as virtues in our modern capitalist society
  
  Couldn't agree more. Lack of empathy seems to be a requirement to get to the top.
- "After exactly 6 hours, as planned, I stood up and started walking toward the audience. Everyone ran away, to escape an actual confrontation."
  Sounds like the Internet in a nutshell
- what always stand out to me every time I come across this story is the person who took the gun away
  
  Yeah it seemed the audience divided into attackers and protectors.
  Genuinely a very interesting story.
- What would you even do? If I saw this as an advertised event, I wouldn't go. Neither participating or spectating sounds very interesting. Only psychopaths are going to show up.
  
  This sums it up for me. An invitation can be open to everyone, but the activity they're being invited to will determine what sort of people show up. When I read, "Come and do whatever you like to an unresisting human who will sit still for six hours," I immediately turn away--not just because I'm not interested in "doing whatever I like" to a person, but because I don't want to be in a room with the crowd of people that I imagine would want to do whatever they like to a person.
- The authorities should recreate this act to use as a honeypot to identify all the psychos in society.
  
  You can start for free by testing all the middle-managers.
  
  The British have something similar at Buckingham palace. Theirs these guards that just stand around being motionless as possible which attracts people who want to do funny shit to them. They attempt funny shit and get arrested
  
  We already have systems in place to funnel ask the sociopaths into positions where they can be monitored by everyone. It's called capitalism and politics.
  
  And do what? Being a psycho isn't illegal in itself.
- What the fuck. Like I'd throw some paint at her or draw something funny on her but my god.
- Wait was the gun fake or real
  
  It was real and loaded. The actor was commited to any outcome including being murdered on stage.
  The audience first tested the waters and gradually escalated to more extreme forms of violence. When the violence started the audience factionalized into those who were committed to stopping her from being shot, arguing and shaming aggressors or physically stepping in.
  While I don't know if I can condone the piece ethically it certainly says more about human nature than most art pieces.

Wow she stood still while someone slashed her throat to drink her blood. That’s commitment.
- The stuff they did boggles my mind such as cutting her with thorns, sexual assault. I don’t understand do they think because it’s “art” it isn’t a fucked up thing to do to a person?
  
  I wonder if it’s supposed to be part of the “art” - to show how depraved humans can be given a chance to do it scot-free.
  
  Bro. Artists can be very edgy. Sculptures of naked people, paintings of people fucking, I bet there is some piece made out of rubber vaginas somewhere.
  I don't justify what people did to her, but you bet she knew what it was going to happen, even the thorn part. Otherwise, she would have stopped with the performance right there and there.
  Edit: she even made a gun and a bullet available to the public!! I'd rather think it was a blank, but if it wasn't, then yeah....
  Edit 2: Ok, I take it back! People are fucked up indeed: "When the gallery announced the work was over, and Abramović began to move again, she said the audience left, unable to face her as a person."
  
  so I realize this is probably a controversial take, but is it really sexual assault in this case. She did consent to „everything“ basically
  
  They are doing it because they can.
  It probably means that they would do that to anyone is they know there will be no repercussions. Like someone who is passed out drunk or a child.
  
  I can't believe how there wasn't a single person in the audience who tried to stop anyone. Other than the person who took the gun away from her head. Still. No one stopped the people trying to injure or assault her. No one called anyone out? It's sickening.

From Wiki article: "When the gallery announced the work was over, and Abramović began to move again, she said the audience left, unable to face her as a person"
It worked, they really saw her as an object

Is she what that one episode of House MD based on? There was a patient that essentially did the same art stunt that ended when a participant poured gas on her and started to light a match.

And now that you know part of the story, please don't stop checking out this unknown gem:
https://youtu.be/GXyq2xUmsVQ
We deserve more Cate Blanchett in comedy roles
- Here is an alternative Piped link(s): https://piped.video/GXyq2xUmsVQ
  https://piped.video/GXyq2xUmsVQ
  Piped is a privacy-respecting open-source alternative frontend to YouTube.
  I'm open-source, check me out at GitHub.
- Nice thank you. I watched it over dinner 🌭

Clearly staged because no-one drew a spunking cock on her forehead.

"Do with me what you want" They proceed to do with her what they want
Surprised pikachu face<
- but it's le deep

sick album cover

This is really disturbing. People in general are awful, that's my take away.
- Sure they are, but the layer beyond that is that they wanted to test the boundaries. She told them anything goes, which means on some level she wanted the freaky shit, and participants didn't want to disappoint.
  
  Absolutely. The number of people in the comments who have missed the whole point of this piece is staggering.
  It's performative endurance art. Marina was very much hoping and intending to make a statement on the human condition and the flexible limits of our morality. The audience played their part perfectly.
  I know that some of you are outraged at the whole thing, but remember that art can't hurt you, the viewer. Art is supposed to make you feel things. And subsequently, you should have sufficient emotional intelligence to analyse and challenge those emotions and the ethical and moral preconceptions they stem from.