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Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts

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Marina Abramović

Rhythm 2

1974/2010

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  • Artist Marina Abramović (Serbian, b. 1946)
  • Title Rhythm 2
  • Date 1974/2010
  • Medium 8 photographic prints and text panel
  • Edition description 1/3
  • Dimensions framed | 61 x 49 x 2 3/8 in. each
    framed | 122 x 196 x 2 3/8 in. overall
  • Includes Rhythm 2
  • Credit line Gift of Christy and John Mack, 2024
  • Object number WU 2024.0008 a-i

Separate text panel (reprinted 2025)
Rhythm 2 / Part 1 / I use my body for an experiment. / I take the medication used in hospitals for the treatment of acute catatonia and schizophrenia, / which puts my body in unpredictable states. / Performance / Facing the public, I take the first medication. / This medication is given to patients who suffer from catatonia to force them to change the / positions of their bodies. / Shortly after taking medication, my muscles begin to contract violently, until I completely lose / control. Consciously I am very aware of what is going on but I can’t control my body. / Duration: 50 min / Break / I turn the radio to a random station. / While preparing for the second part the public listen to Slavic folk songs on the radio. / Duration 10 min. / Rhythm 2 / Part 2 / Performance / Taking the second pill. / Facing the public, I take the second medication. / This medication is given to schizophrenic patients with violent behavior to calm them down. / Shortly after taking the medication, I first feel cold and then completely lose consciousness / forgetting who and where I am. / The performance finishes when the medication loses its effect. / 1974 / Performance, 6 hours. / Galerjia Suvremene Umjetnosti, Zagreb

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