LJUBLJANA GALLERY OPENS ABRAMOVIĆ-ULAY ARCHIVE

Summary:

• Ljubljana's Cukrarna Gallery presents the first exhibition focused entirely on Marina Abramović and Ulay's collaborative work from 1976-1988
• The show includes performance documentation, personal correspondence, and archival materials from their 12-year partnership
• Opening November 30 on both artists' shared birthday, the exhibition examines their relationship as both artistic medium and subject

The collaborative work of Marina Abramović and Ulay will be examined in a new exhibition opening at Cukrarna Gallery in Ljubljana, Slovenia. ART VITAL – 12 Years of Ulay / Marina Abramović opens November 30, coinciding with both artists' birthday.

The exhibition represents the first comprehensive presentation dedicated exclusively to their joint practice, spanning from their initial meeting in 1976 through their final collaborative performance in 1988. During this period, the artists created performances that used their romantic relationship as the foundation for exploring themes of trust, endurance, and physical limits.

Their partnership concluded with "The Great Wall Walk", a performance where each artist began walking from opposite ends of the Great Wall of China, meeting in the middle to formally end both their personal and professional relationship. This final act marked the conclusion of a creative partnership that had produced some of performance art's most documented works.

The Cukrarna presentation organizes their collaborative output thematically, beginning with "Relation in Space", performed at the Venice Biennale, and continuing through works such as "Rest Energy" (1980) and "Imponderabilia" (1977). These performances often placed the artists in situations requiring complete mutual dependence and trust.

Beyond performance documentation, the exhibition includes previously unseen personal correspondence between the artists, as well as archival materials that provide context for their working methods. These materials offer insight into how their personal relationship informed their artistic output during the twelve-year period.

The show examines how Abramović and Ulay developed a practice centered on physical and emotional risk-taking. Their performances frequently involved elements of danger, with works that tested the boundaries between art and life, performer and audience.

Accompanying the exhibition, Cukrarna will reissue "Relation Work and Detour", originally published by the artists in 1980. The publication documented their collaborative process and theoretical framework.

The gallery notes that advance booking is recommended for the exhibition, which runs through early 2025. Cukrarna is located at Poljanski nasip 40 in Ljubljana's city center.

ART VITAL – 12 Years of Ulay / Marina Abramović continues the gallery's focus on Eastern European performance art and its international influence during the late 20th century.