Artist Marina Abramović during a singing lesson in 2011.
Production still from the series Exclusive. © Art21, Inc. 2013. Cinematography by Paul Gibson
“I really love listening to people sing and I was always jealous of that kind of talent…to open your heart and sing your soul out.” —Marina Abramović
In today’s Exclusive, filmed in 2011, Marina Abramović prepares for her role in The Life and Death of Marina Abramović, an opera based on her own life. Directed by Bob Wilson and featuring original music by Antony Hegarty, The Life and Death of Marina Abramović premiered at the Manchester International Festival in 2011 and traveled to New York City’s Park Avenue Armory in 2013 (December 12-21). In the film, Abramović takes one of her first ever singing lessons at the Manhattan studio of vocal coach Nora York. Abramović discusses her desire to become a better singer despite being told as a child that she “didn’t have an ear for music.”
Exclusive is supported, in part, by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council; 21c Museum Hotel, the Lily Auchincloss Foundation, and by individual contributors.