Why? Abramović was interested in the "mistake" and the "consciousness of the moment."
The lesson of Rhythm 0 is devastating:
Two spectators, realizing she wasn't performing but actually dying , rushed in and pulled her out. Later, Abramović reflected: "When you lose consciousness, you lose time, you lose rhythm." She realized that the physical body has boundaries that the mind cannot always predict. She never performed with fire again. Sandwiched chronologically between the fire and the knives, Rhythm 2 is the quietest—and perhaps the most terrifying—piece of the series. marina abramović rhythm
She then cut her hair and fingernails, throwing them into the flames. Finally, she stepped into the center of the burning star. The plan was to test the limits of the body and the mind. But the performance went wrong—or right, depending on your perspective. She never performed with fire again
In Naples, Abramović placed on a table. She invited the audience to use these objects on her body in any way they wished for six hours. The objects ranged from benign (a feather, a rose, a glass of water) to violent (a scalpel, a chain, a loaded gun with one bullet). Finally, she stepped into the center of the burning star
For the first three hours, the audience was gentle. They turned her around. They gave her a drink. They wiped her tears.
We are all performing Rhythm 0 right now. Every time you post a photo, you hand the audience 72 tools. You give them the rose and the scalpel. You beg them to look, to comment, to judge. And sometimes, the crowd holds the gun.