Marina Abramović to stage first museum exhibition in China.
Marina Abramović, Great Wall Walk, 1988. Courtesy of the artist.
The Modern Art Museum (MAM) Shanghai will host the first-ever museum exhibition in China by internationally renowned performance artist Marina Abramović. Titled “Marina Abramović: Transforming Energy,” the exhibition is scheduled to run from October 10, 2024 to February 28, 2025.
The exhibition draws inspiration from Abramović’s 1988 walk across the Great Wall of China with German artist Ulay. In this iconic performance, entitled The Lovers, the two artists walked from either side of the Great Wall and met in the middle, making the couple the first international artists to traverse the landmark. The pair, who were artistic collaborators and lovers between 1976 and 1983, initially intended to marry when their paths on the Wall crossed. However, the project changed course during its long planning phase as Abramović and Ulay’s relationship shifted. In the end, the work was the final performance work the pair created together.
Curated by Shai Baitel, the artistic director of MAM Shanghai, in collaboration with Abramović, the show will feature over 1,000 images of the Great Wall walk. New artworks are also being created specifically for this exhibition.
Portrait of Marina Abramovic, 2018. Photo by Dusan Reljin. Courtesy of the artist.
Like Abramović’s other recent exhibitions at the Royal Academy in London and MoMA in New York, “Transforming Energy” will include several works that invite participation. Other works on show, from the “Transitory Objects” series, take The Lovers as a starting point, turning different types of crystal, wood, and copper into talismanic sculptues to communicate the significance of the journey. Spanning three floors of the museum, the show aims to offer a comprehensive view of Abramović’s career as well as her latest works.
In a statement, Abramović commented on the personal significance of this milestone exhibition: “Nearly 40 years after Ulay and I walked 2,500 kilometers to meet in the middle of the Great Wall of China, I am looking forward to opening ‘Transforming Energy’ at MAM Shanghai. I return to China with great excitement, presenting a body of work connected to that experience.”
