Abramović – Ulay 1980–1988: Desert Storm Survivors
Svetlana Racanović
Poznańskie Studia Slawistyczne January 29, 2018 DOI: 10.14746/pss.2017.13.21 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Key points | Argues that Abramović and Ulay's adoption of Eastern meditation practices during their travels reshaped their joint performances, and that the repeated performance Nightsea Crossing, with its refined simplicity and stillness, drove their pursuit of self-perfection and connection with otherness, influencing their later individual careers. |
Abstract
The twelve-year collaborative practice of Marina Abramović and Ulay (Franck Uwe Laysiepen), started with extreme, rapturous and unflinching explorations of capacities of the body in their early performances (a phase they called The Warriors), that corresponded to the fury of the 1970s. In an environment hostile to the living, phenomenological body (in arts, in theoretical discourse) of the 1980s, the two artists recalibrated their living and artistic strategy. During their extensive journeys into distant lands (deserts of Asia, Africa, Australia), they were introduced to and embraced the practices of Eastern meditation techniques, which secured and procured their escape from the limitations of their own culture and their relationship. They also significantly influenced and modified forms and functions of their joint performances. The refined simplicity and stillness of the form of their many-times (re)enacted performance Nightsea Crossing focussed and spurred their inner forces towards self-perfection and the unfolding of more sophisticated lines of connection with the outside, with otherness. The legacy of this performance has affected the direction and function of their later, individual careers.