The Artist Is Present
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| The Artist Is Present | |
|---|---|
| Title | The Artist Is Present |
| Artist | Marina Abramović |
| Year | 2010 |
| Medium | Performance art |
| Location | Museum of Modern Art, New York |
The Artist Is Present is a 2010 durational performance by Marina Abramović staged at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City that explored presence, endurance, and audience engagement. The piece was presented as part of a retrospective organized by MoMA curators including Klaus Biesenbach, with institutional support from patrons such as Lorna Macklin and programming tied to exhibitions at venues like the Serpentine Galleries and the Centre Pompidou. Abramović's practice links to earlier performance artists including Yves Klein, Vito Acconci, Yoko Ono, Chris Burden, and Carolee Schneemann.
Background and Conception
The conception of the work emerged from Abramović's long-term collaborations and antecedent performances such as Rhythm 0, Imponderabilia, Relation in Time, and the seven-hour endurance pieces with Ulay. Curators at MoMA, including Klaus Biesenbach, Monica Ramirez-Montagut, and Laurie Anderson framed the retrospective alongside modernist narratives spanning Marcel Duchamp, Jackson Pollock, Pablo Picasso, Joseph Beuys, and Nam June Paik. Funding and institutional logistics involved organizations like the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Guggenheim Foundation, and trustees such as Leon Black and Pat Steir. Discussions referenced performance histories in texts by critics and historians such as Pablo Lafuente, RoseLee Goldberg, Peter Brook, and scholars at institutions like Columbia University, New York University, and the University of California, Berkeley.
The Performance at MoMA
The performance ran from March to May 2010 in the MoMA atrium and involved Abramović sitting motionless for eight hours daily while museum visitors, queued and screened by staff including security from Securitas AB, took turns sitting opposite her. The production involved logistical coordination with MoMA departments headed by figures such as Glenn D. Lowry, exhibition designers from studios associated with Diller Scofidio + Renfro, lighting by professionals linked to Ivo van Hove collaborators, and archival documentation by media teams from outlets like The New York Times, BBC News, The Guardian, The New Yorker, and Arte. High-profile participants and visitors included artists and cultural figures such as Lady Gaga, Robert Mapplethorpe, Anish Kapoor, Lou Reed, Bjork, Laurie Anderson, and former collaborators like Ulay. Photographers and filmmakers including Matthew Akers, Tilda Swinton, William Kentridge, and documentarians from HBO and BBC recorded interactions.
Reception and Criticism
Critical responses spanned mainstream coverage in publications like The New York Times, The Guardian, The Washington Post, Le Monde, Der Spiegel, and El País to academic debate in journals associated with Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Routledge, and university departments at Harvard University, Yale University, University of Chicago, and Goldsmiths, University of London. Praise from critics such as Roberta Smith and commentators in Frieze contrasted with skeptical analyses in venues like Artforum, Art in America, and essays by scholars including Claire Bishop and Hal Foster. Discussions invoked precedents in performance documented by Hans Namuth, Allan Kaprow, John Cage, and philosophical readings citing Maurice Merleau-Ponty, Martin Heidegger, and Michel Foucault.
Impact and Legacy
The exhibition significantly raised Abramović's profile, influencing institutional programming at museums such as the Tate Modern, Centre Pompidou, Stedelijk Museum, Whitney Museum of American Art, and smaller venues including The Kitchen and the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. It stimulated scholarship at conferences hosted by College Art Association, International Association of Art Critics (AICA), and symposia at Pratt Institute, Cooper Union, and New School. The piece affected curatorial practices, visitor engagement policies at museums like Tate Britain and Stedelijk, and inspired artists including Tino Sehgal, Allora and Calzadilla, Olafur Eliasson, Rirkrit Tiravanija, and Sophie Calle.
Related Works and Subsequent Projects
Following the MoMA retrospective, Abramović expanded projects and collaborations including the establishment of the Marina Abramović Institute (MAI), performances staged at venues such as the Serpentine Galleries, Royal Academy of Arts, Southbank Centre, and presentations alongside festivals like Venice Biennale, Documenta, Skulptur Projekte Münster, and Performa. Media and film projects connected to the work involved directors and producers such as Matthew Akers, Julian Schnabel, distributors including HBO, and exhibition catalogs co-published by Taschen and Rizzoli International Publications. The artist continued dialogues with contemporaries and institutions including Ulay, Klaus Biesenbach, Glenn D. Lowry, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, and academic programs across Princeton University, Yale University, and New York University.