Although there are many books about Marina Abramovic available, this particular book captures the type of art this genius of an artist has created and continues to perform. It is a splendid addition to the library on contemporary art. Different works will be reperformed during the run of the exhibition, so no two visits will be the same.

I had experienced absolute freedom — I had felt that my body was without boundaries, limitless; that pain didn't matter, that nothing mattered at all — and it all intoxicated me," recalled Abramovic of that first performance in her 2016 autobiography, "Walk Through Walls." In the decade since, her works have beencharacterized less by violence and more by asceticism and recollection. Her method is based on a mix of various esoteric and eastern relaxation and meditation exercises. She spends every year's end in a monastery in India to meditate and recharge her batteries. "We have to create situations where our bodies are healthy and function well," she said. The UK's Royal Academy of Arts is dedicating amajor exhibition to iconic Serbian performance artist Marina Abramovic. It is the first retrospective to be given to a female artist in the institution's history. Until you understand her childhood and youth you might question how Marina Abramavic, who pioneered performance art, came from Tito’s drab grey Yugoslavia. While physically and emotionally abused by her parents, she did not live in a tiny flat with 20 relatives and was not deprived of the outside world or art. Her parents' connections helped, but she achieved on her own and her own terms.

Balkan Baroque

Kai aš skaičiau šią knygą, sulaukiau kitų skaitytojų žinučių: pavydžiu, kad ją skaitai. Tai dabar aš pavydžiu tiems, kurie dar tik skaitys, nes man užvertus paskutinį puslapį, norėjosi pradėti skaityti iš naujo. Neabejotinai viena stipriausių ir geriausių mano gyvenime skaitytų knygų. Born in Belgrade, Serbia in 1946, Marina Abramovic studiedart both in her hometown and in Zagreb, Croatia. Early on she developed an interest in performance art, including experiments with sound installations. Ze stelt me vragen over mijn eigen principes. Als ze zegt dat ze zit te trillen van angst als er turbulentie is in het vliegtuig, dan denk ik: geen last van. ‘Maar’, voegt ze eraan toe, ’als het om mijn werk gaat, gooi ik alle voorzichtigheid overboord.’ Op dat moment gaan de radertjes in mijn hersenen in het werk. Therefor overall I feel this was a 3,5 stars book for me and a definite recommended read for anyone interested in modern art!

What do you think of my energy? Not bad at all. You’re very pedantic. You’re very clean cut. Good teeth.Abramović grew up in Belgrade, in a grand, book-filled apartment big enough to house the aforementioned childhood studio. Unlike most families, hers did not suffer the privations of communist Yugoslavia; in the war, her parents had fought with Tito’s partisans, and when it was over, they were rewarded with important jobs in the Party. But if they were privileged, they were also wildly unhappy. They loathed one another, and her mother, Danica, was controlling and violent. Even at the age of 24, her daughter was still expected to return home by 10pm. Escape should have presented itself in the form of art school (the Academy of Fine Arts in Belgrade), and an early marriage (to Neša Paripović, then a fellow student). But Danica’s grip was unshakeable. In consequence, Abramović’s rebellions took ever more extreme forms. On one occasion, she smeared the contents of 300 cans of brown shoe polish on the walls and windows of her bedroom and studio. Her mother opened the door, screamed, and never entered again. Though work is a salve, not even art can stave off a future that is shrinking all the time An impressive tale of how the performance artist became present in the art world and the broader society. This book makes you want to be an artist, minus the abusive childhood. - 3,5 stars