Reflections on Marina Abramovic & Ulay meeting again at the MoMA:
Their journey as artists and lovers– choosing to separate in order to be whole individually– always tugs at my heart. Marina Abramović and Ulay intended to marry upon meeting at the center of their pilgrimage along the Great Wall of China. However, by the time they completed their 90 day journey and met in the middle, their relationship had ended. Instead of a wedding, their meeting symbolized the conclusion of their romantic and artistic partnership. They embraced and parted ways, marking the end of their 12-year relationship.
I am reminded of how love can be both gruesome and yet profoundly beautiful to witness and experience. In this clip from Marina's MoMA performance, you can see there is still so much love between the two. Their story and this moment of reunion after decades of separation, inspired the following words:
Love, in all its messiness, rawness and divinity, is worth more than pride, control or certainty. The risk of being a fool in love is always worth it because the experience of love itself is the blessing. Vulnerability is the price of intimacy. Without it, love would remain shallow and unreal. And yet, even in love, choosing wholeness as an individual is a profound act of courage and self respect. By honouring yourself, you are allowing love to exist without losing yourself. To love and to be loved, I think, is the greatest gift of the human experience.
