In the year 1974, Serbian artist Marina Abramovic stood motionless in a gallery of several dozen people and in front of a table laden with 72 things, among them a rose, feather, food, drinks, but also a razor, scissors, a gun and a bullet. The attendees had only one task; do whatever they wanted to the artist with the objects at hand, and the conclusion of the exhibition opened up a conversation about the responsibility of the audience and most importantly, consent and bodily autonomy. 

As bazaar as this exhibition might sound, this is not the only time that Abramovic has attempted such intense and most often life threatening shows of human strength, as she participated in many other artistic performances where she pushed her body to the absolute limits in an attempt to shine a light on women’s empowerment, vulnerability and exposure,  and how far society is willing to go when not given strong boundaries.

The instructions in front of the table read “ There are 72 objects on this table that one can use on me as desired. During this time I take full responsibility.” Though the exhibition was attended by a couple dozen people, and timeline of the performance is debated, the most accurate retelling was written by art critic Tomas McEvilley, who was present for the performance’s entirety. Lasting 6 hours, the “Rhythm 0” exhibition started out relatively harmless according to McEvilley, with the participants handing Abramovic the rose, feeding her cake or thrusting her hand into the air. However innocently it all started, it quickly turned insidious as within three hours of the start of the performance, all of Abramovic’s clothes were cut off, and based off of McEvilley’s writings, as time went on, someone took the scalpel off the table, cut Abramovic’s neck and drank her blood. Abramovic was further sexually assaulted, carried around naked, and even had her finger put on the trigger of a loaded gun, and she was commanded to shoot herself. 

Though not every participant of the exhibition participated in the heinous acts done to her, with many forming a protective arch around her and even breaking out in fights, Rhythm 0 is still a prime example of the extent that human nature is able to go to, and the called upon a conversation about women’s exploitation and power dynamics. After the duration of the 6 hour ordeal, Abramovic began to walk around the room to each individual, initiating eye contact with both her aggressors or her protectors, but neither looked her in the eye, with some even running away completely. Abramovic later indicated that she felt extremely violated from the process, with some of her hair allegedly turning completely white from the ordeal. The whole performance was meant to be a symbol of willful vulnerability and exposure, reflecting the artist’s aim to push past any boundaries while simultaneously forming an ambiguous bond between the creator and her audience. Aside from that, the performance’s running mirrors that of broader societal themes and discloses truths about human nature, authority, permission, accountability and the volatile relationship between the artist and her audience that are particularly relevant in our current culture. Though Abramovic was hesitant to call her work specifically feminist, as she also explores themes of class, and openness that can be applied to anyone, her work, specifically Rhythm 0 also furthers the conversation on consent, objectification and patriarchal structures, as the power ties emphasized and established in this piece are ambiguous, confusing the position of Abramovic as both object and subject. Abramovic’s performance calls into question the female body’s fragility and objectification, as well as the reciprocating way in which spectators and participants become objects of each other.