21 March 2012
In another country it would probably be quite normal. In Italy, on the other hand, the sight of the legendary pioneer of performance art Marina Abramović appearing as a guest on a public TV program that turns around soccer, broadcast on Sunday afternoon, was surreal. Hard to believe. And yet it really did happen… The credit (or blame, in the eyes of those who still defend a little old world of art that may never have existed) for this small but revolutionary event goes to Victoria Cabello, who interviewed her for about twenty minutes on Quelli che il calcio. She deliberately kept the questions simple in order to make her art comprehensible to an audience of the uninitiated (or rather, not to make it any more complicated than it is). That – and to publicize her exhibition at the PAC – was the reason Marina was there and she said so straightaway: “I want to make my performances mainstream.” And with her charisma, a blend of solemnity and accessibility, she threw herself into the task without a safety net. She even accepted a comparison with her antithesis, the Italian showgirl Valeria Marini. The world of Twitter went crazy. Others didn’t even notice. But who cares. We want more!
Photo: M. Pomati © sgp