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A really beautiful moment - Marina Abramovic & Ulay

rodr said:
What I found sad is that it was all set up for nothing to happen. Sometimes silence just isn't right.
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That was waaaay better than some awkward small talk. "Sooo, how have you been? Are you still doing ______ at ______? Are you seeing anybody special?"
 
rodr said:
What I found sad is that it was all set up for nothing to happen. Sometimes silence just isn't right.
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personally, i think silence or not is irrelevant. in these situations, may seem odd, but i always watch fingers. eyes are obvious. people control their eyes. fingers not so much. people rarely 'act' with them. even professional actors suck at it. have always considered them a tell.
 
2strokeYardSale said:
That was waaaay better than some awkward small talk. "Sooo, how have you been? Are you still doing ______ at ______? Are you seeing anybody special?"
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A more interesting question might be "Why are you here?".

littlebeast said:
personally, i think silence or not is irrelevant. in these situations, may seem odd, but i always watch fingers. eyes are obvious. people control their eyes. fingers not so much. people rarely 'act' with them. even professional actors suck at it. have always considered them a tell.
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An insightful response as usual. :)

Curious, though, that the dude shows up after all those years in a setting that requires silence. Then he walks away, and she dries her eyes and gets on with the show. Comes across to me as a self-imposed tragedy. Or more likely, pre-arranged.
 
rodr said:
A more interesting question might be "Why are you here?".



An insightful response as usual. :)

Curious, though, that the dude shows up after all those years in a setting that requires silence. Then he walks away, and she dries her eyes and gets on with the show. Comes across to me as a self-imposed tragedy. Or more likely, pre-arranged.
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Yes.
 
elbacalao said:
had she not been sitting in a well respected museum, with the publicity machine in full gear, but was instead sitting in a lawn chair in the middle of a yard in Idaho. Would people find it so moving? I doubt it.
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First, most people don't know about MoMa and its awesome art programs
Second, this moment were it filmed in NYC or "middle of a yard in Idaho" would still resonate in the hearts of all those who have loved and lost
 
m_asim said:
First, most people don't know about MoMa and its awesome art programs
Second, this moment were it filmed in NYC or "middle of a yard in Idaho" would still resonate in the hearts of all those who have loved and lost
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I wasnt referring to the specific moment when her ex sat down in front of her. I was referring to the entire exhibit, which was months long.

I'll agree that the moment filmed with her ex would resonate with many who have loved and lost. Thats why they staged the thing.
 
God, and here I thought *I* was a cynical crotchety old lady. You guys have me beat. Hands down

Funny you all kept mentioning the piano - I was like "what piano" Had to play the vid again to listen to what you were talking about. I really didn't notice it at all the first time I viewed. And that is saying something, I am VERY fussy about music and immediately turn off anything I can't stand as it grates sooooooo bad on my nerves.

The piano in the vid? Didn't notice it :dunno
 
Yeah, having an old love returning on grand stage. Her emotion seems honest enough but the scenario is fishy.
 
The skepticism over authenticity is rather interesting in this thread. What does it mean to question the show of emotion as if it really were a show. There's some interesting exploration right there and this shows the greater success of this piece as it makes us question the mechanism behind the emotion, examine the circumstances, and explore the relationship between long standing memory and ethereal experience.

I'm a strong believer in silence as a powerful tool in our communicative toolbox. The distress of not being able to speak your thoughts can teach you quite a bit about yourself and how you interact with others. It also illustrates how limited we are even with all the right words.

Ok, go about your cynicism. :twofinger
 
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I like turtles
 
EjGlows said:
The skepticism over authenticity is rather interesting in this thread. What does it mean to question the show of emotion as if it really were a show. There's some interesting exploration right there and this shows the greater success of this piece as it makes us question the mechanism behind the emotion, examine the circumstances, and explore the relationship between long standing memory and ethereal experience.

I'm a strong believer in silence as a powerful tool in our communicative toolbox. The distress of not being able to speak your thoughts can teach you quite a bit about yourself and how you interact with others. It also illustrates how limited we are even with all the right words.

Ok, go about your cynicism. :twofinger
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- The Jersey Shore and The OC are reality based.
- but the situations they encounter are often staged by the producers (eg they'll have a past "evil" character appear out of nowhere).
- the reality stars are unaware that it was staged so you get an authentic reaction since they believe it's real.
- this mechanism to create drama on reality shows is fairly well documented.

what does this have to do with this performance art?

whenever i see a compelling character appear out of nowhere, for no reason, i assume it was not an accident. because it never is.

probably her manager or friend thought "staring at nobodies is boring as hell. let's make it interesting. who can we get? how about that guy she fell in love with 30 years ago? and don't tell marina about it so she will be surprised. it'll make better TV"
 
rodr said:
An insightful response as usual. :)

Curious, though, that the dude shows up after all those years in a setting that requires silence. Then he walks away, and she dries her eyes and gets on with the show. Comes across to me as a self-imposed tragedy. Or more likely, pre-arranged.
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Um, what's so "insightful" about that. Sounds like littlebeast is a poker player. That's not insight, that's just observation.

These are not your average folks. They are both oddball European performance artists from an era where performance art was really transgressive. "Living your art" is not just a catchphrase to them. It's at the core of their being.

I'm not saying their art isn't a little bit pretentious and you're not allowed to make fun of it. But I don't see why it's so hard to believe, considering they probably still move within some similar social circles, that they really hadn't seen each other for years and that he may have just felt that this would be more meaningful way to reconnect than friending her on facebook or sexting her a pic of his 30 years older junk.
 
psychocandy said:
Um, what's so "insightful" about that. Sounds like littlebeast is a poker player. That's not insight, that's just observation.
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I don't get your point. Seems to me most insightful statements are observations. And if observing a person's fingers leads to winning poker, that's insight in my book.

As for being cynical - that's only true if I'm wrong. :p
 
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