Marina Abramović“Grandmother of performance art”

Background and early life

• Born in Yugoslavia, in 1946 to strict parents who were both high ranking officials in the socialist government.

Her grandmother was also strict and a devout Serbian Orthodox.

She attended the Academy of Fine Arts in Belgrade.

• Abramović’s work focuses on the body- usually her own, where she tests the limits of her body, both spiritually and mentally.

• Her first projects were a series known as ‘rhythms’ (1973-1974)

‘Rhythm 0’

“All my inspiration comes from life. That's how it never stops, in a

way.”

“I think 21st century should be art without objects.”

“I am only interested in the ideas that become obsessive and make me feel uneasy. The ideas that I'm

afraid of.”

Breathing In, Breathing Out (1978) Abramović and Ulay

The Marina Abramović Institute (MAI)