Marco Anelli: Portraits in the Presence of Marina Abramovi?

Previously unseen documentation of Abramovi?’s The Artist Is Present, on the landmark performance’s 10th anniversary

In 2010, Marina Abramovi? (born 1946) staged The Artist Is Present; it would quickly become one of her most iconic projects. For three months, Abramovi? sat at a table in the central atrium of the Museum of Modern Art in New York for eight hours a day while museum visitors were invited to sit in a chair opposite her for as long as they felt was necessary. Although Abramovi? simply held their gazes in silence for the entire time that they remained seated, each participant reacted in profoundly different ways. Some wept while others held back laughter; some stayed in their seats for five minutes, others for five hours.
Throughout the piece’s duration, Italian photographer Marco Anelli (born 1968) carried out his photographic project capturing each sitter’s reaction and Abramovi?’s response in turn, noting how long they sat with one another. His photographs represent a wide spectrum of emotional responses across thousands of faces, including the more recognizable visages of celebrities like Lou Reed, Patti Smith, Björk and Sharon Stone. This collection of photographs―some of which have never been published before―is both a chronicle of Abramovi?’s seminal project and a stunning portrait of humanity. Anelli’s documentation of the unforgettable performance reveals the vulnerability inherent in every human connection, no matter how seemingly inconsequential.