GLENN LOWRY: One of the influences on Abramović’s work is Tibetan Buddhism. In Nude with Skeleton, Abramović evokes a traditional exercise undertaken by Tibetan monks during which they sleep alongside the dead in various states of decay. Through this practice they gain an understanding of the process of death.
MARINA ABRAMOVIĆ: In different periods of my life I made several works using skeleton.
I construct the skeleton on my own size, and I lie posing the skeleton on my own body. By breathing slowly, skeleton get animated and moves together with me.
The work is really about facing your own mortality. Is about fear of pain and fear of dying. It's something that in our life we fear the most.
And, again in my own work, I always like to confront with the fears. So, being close to the skeleton, washing it, carrying it, breathing through, and looking at, confronting it, it's the way to deal with that fear.
GLENN LOWRY: Nude with Skeleton is re-performed continuously in shifts throughout this exhibition for a total of over 700 hours.