The Lovers
1988
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racing forms
by p.c. smith
a gallery tip sheet
Marina Abramovic
at Sean Kelly
Jan. 10-Feb. 15, 1997
In 1988, the performance-art team of Marina
Abramovic and Ulay set out from opposite
ends of the Great Wall of China, each
walking for 90 days over 1,250 miles, to
meet in the middle for an action called The
Lovers. They planned to marry there in a
traditional Chinese ceremony, but in an
twist on the expected ending, they decided
instead to separate forever. The present
exhibition, "Boat Emptying Stream
Entering," reflects Marina's walk. Twelve
color photographs document it literally,
with her tiny figure dwarfed by the
serpentine route. Several rubbings are
taken from the wall itself. An installation
of three video screens underneath giant
umbrellas made of oil-paper and bamboo
reflect Marina's experience more
allusively. Althought it includes walking
sequences, the video is dominated by
repeated clips of a drooling Chinese man
holding a snake in his mouth while making
slow-motion shamanistic gestures.
The Lovers action has an epic magnitude,
and the documentary photos have a cinematic
sweep. Over 20 years ago, in a strongly
male-dominated art world, Abramovic
fashioned a materialist "body art" that put
a premium on endurance, emotional
detachment and more than a little
masochism; now, at a time when younger
women artists are increasingly taking up
issues of gender and sexuality, Abramovic's
work has evolved away from the body and towards mysticism and a
spiritual search.
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