---

Marina Abramović

---

Marina Abramović

(Born 1946, works in New York)

The Hunt Chair for Animal Spirits, 1998

Concrete, deer and moose antlers, steel

Height 1200 cm

Thanks to KnislingeVerken AB, Broby Sprutmålning

Marina Abramović is one of the world’s most well-known performance artists. Since the 1970s, pain, taboos, endurance, time, rituals, and intimacy have been recuring themes in her work, which often stretches both her own limits and those of the audience. The hunt that takes place at Wanås became the point of departure for Marina Abramović’s artwork The Hunt Chair for Animal Spirits. Hunting trophies—deer and moose antlers—have been attached along the 12-meter high legs of the chair. Abramović describes her source of inspiration for the artwork: “I lived among the Aboriginals in the center of Australia they learned [sic] me that we have to be very aware that our inner balance depends of the Earth Spirits. If we take something from the nature: a leaf, branch, stones, fruits or animals, we have to replace this by giving to the spirits. I was very inspired by this idea of exchange; if you take you have to give. In this way I developed the idea of a chair for the animal spirits which is a forest totem at the same time.”