S6 EP7: Marina Abramovic on the relationship between performance and pain, never feeling loved in her childhood, and harmful conspiracies

For the final episode of this series, Louis travels to Manchester to sit down with Marina Abramovic, the self-proclaimed “grandmother of performance art”. Marina tells Louis the stories behind some of her most famous artworks, as well as the relationship between performance and pain, never feeling loved in her childhood, and being caught in the middle of an online conspiracy.

Warnings: Strong language and adult themes.

Links/Attachments:

Balkan Erotic Epic, Marina Abramovic (2025)

theguardian.com/artanddesign/2025/may/22/manch…

The Artist is Present, Marina Abramovic (2010)

imdb.com/title/tt2073029

Lips of Thomas, Marina Abramovic (1975)

guggenheim.org/artwork/5176

Rhythm 0, Marina Abramovic (1974)

youtube.com/watch?v=xTBkbseXfOQ&list=PL0bC…

Cut Piece, Yoko Ono (1964)

moma.org/audio/playlist/15/373

Cut Piece, Yoko Ono (2005):

theguardian.com/world/2003/sep/16/arts.france

Bob Wilson’s Life and Death of Marina Abramovic, (2012)

imdb.com/title/tt2177497

Book: When Marina Abramovic Dies, James Westcott (2014)

mitpress.mit.edu/9780262526814/when-marina-abr…

Light – Dark, Ulay & Marina Abramovic (1978)

stedelijk.nl/en/collection/13991-ulay-light-dark

Seedbed, Vito Acconci (1972)

metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/266876

Seven Easy Pieces, Marina Abramovic (2005)

pastexhibitions.guggenheim.org/abramovic

The Great Wall Walk, Marina Abramovic (1988)

theguardian.com/travel/2020/apr/25/marina-abra…

Book: Walk Through Walls: A Memoir, Marina Abramovic (2016)

waterstones.com/book/walk-through-walls/marina…

Balkan Baroque, Marina Abramovic (1997)

singulart.com/blog/en/2024/06/03/balkan-baroqu…

youtube.com/watch?v=UQigTZuTmv0

BBC Maestro, Marina Abramovic:

bbcmaestro.com/courses/marina-abramovic/the-ar…

Article: ‘Marina Abramovic Just Wants Conspiracy Theorists to Let Her Be’, New York Times, 2020

nytimes.com/2020/04/21/arts/design/marina-abra…

The Seven Deaths of Maria Callas (2022)

harrisonparrott.com/news/2022-11-04/marina-abr…

The Truth Vs Alex Jones (2024)

tv.apple.com/gb/show/the-truth-vs-alex-jones/u…

Credits:

Producer: Millie Chu 

Assistant Producer: Maan al-Yasiri

Production Manager: Francesca Bassett 

Music: Miguel D’Oliveira 

Audio Mixer: Tom Guest

Video Mixer: Scott Edwards

Shownotes compiled by Elly Young

Executive Producer: Arron Fellows 

A Mindhouse Production for Spotify 

mindhouse.co.uk 

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices