Marina Abramović is an artist renowned for performances and feats of endurance, in which her body is pushed to its limits. She has moved, scandalised and delighted audiences for half a century, and is now celebrated by world-leading galleries and institutions. Marina was born in Belgrade in 1946. Her parents were honoured as war heroes for their work for the Partisan resistance movement, and both took up senior roles in the post-war Yugoslav government. Marina became interested in painting during her childhood, and went on to study art. She first made her name as a performance artist in her 20s, creating events which often shocked viewers – and were equally traumatic for her. In 1974 she placed 72 objects, including sharp tools, a whip and a loaded pistol, on a table and invited gallery goers to use them on her, however they wished. She was attacked and left scarred, and part of her hair went white. For many years she led a nomadic existence, creating works with her partner, the German artist Ulay. In 1997, in response to the war in Bosnia, she created a prize-winning work for the Venice Biennale, in which for four days she attempted to scrub the blood from a vast pile of cow bones. In 2010 her exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art in New York attracted almost a million people, many queuing for hours for a chance to sit opposite her in silence as part of her marathon performance The Artist is Present. More recently her work has been celebrated in a major retrospective exhibition at the Royal Academy in London, along with performances at English National Opera, marking the centenary of Maria Callas. DISC ONE: Aria from The Goldberg Variations. Composed by Johann Sebastian Bach German composer and musician, performed by Igor Levit DISC TWO: Norma, Act 1: "Casta diva". Composed by Vincenzo Bellini, performed by Maria Callas (soprano) and Coro del Teatro alla Scala di Milano DISC THREE: 4 Degrees - Anohni DISC FOUR: Paloma Negra - Chavela Vargas DISC FIVE: Private Dancer - Tina Turner DISC SIX: Sherab Nyingpo Mantra (The Heart Sutra) - Tashi Lhumpo Monks DISC SEVEN: Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major, K. 467 - 2. Andante. Composed by Mozart and performed by Mitsuko Uchida (piano), with the English Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Jeffrey Tate DISC EIGHT: Rum And Coca-Cola - The Andrews Sisters BOOK CHOICE: In Search of the Miraculous by Peter D Ouspensky LUXURY ITEM: A cashmere blanket CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: Sherab Nyingpo Mantra (The Heart Sutra) - Tashi Lhunpo Monks Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Sarah Taylor
Before this BBC podcast kicks off, I'd like to tell you about some others you might enjoy.
My name's Will Wilkin and I commission music podcasts for the BBC.
It's a really cool job.
Every day we get to tell the incredible stories behind songs, moments and movements.
Stories of struggle and success, rises and falls, the funny, the ridiculous.
And the BBC's position at the heart of british music means we can tell those stories like no one else.
We were, are, and always will be right there at the center of the narrative.
So whether you want an insightful take on music right now, or a nostalgic deep dive into some of the most famous and infamous moments in music, check out the music podcasts on BBC sounds.
BBC Sounds Music Radio podcasts hello, I'm Lauren La Verne, and this is the Desert Island Discs podcast.
Every week I ask my guests to choose the eight tracks, book and luxury they'd want to take with them if they were cast away to a desert island.
And for rights reasons, the music is shorter than the original broadcast.
I hope you enjoy listening.
My castaway this week is Marina Abramovich.
She's one of the most revered living artists.
During her 50 year career, she has moved, scandalized, provoked and delighted audiences around the world, and in the process, brought performance art into the mainstream.
Her work is characterized by physical endurance.
She has drugged herself, walked the Great Wall of China, and spent days vainly attempting to clean blood from a gigantic pile of cow bones representing the war in the country of her birth, the former Yugoslavia.
Her work is every bit as emotional as it is physical, and her invitation to us, the public, to participate has made her world famous.
In the beginning, the reaction was sometimes violent.
In 1974, she invited gallerygoers to use objects on her body to stimulate pleasure or pain.