“The public was really kind. They gave me roses, kissed me, and watched me closely. But as time went on, their behavior became increasingly wild.”
Emboldened by the knowledge that Abramović had surrendered her fate completely to them, spectators grew increasingly violent. They slashed her clothes with razor blades, and one individual even cut her throat to drink her blood.
The artist later revealed that she believed the turning point came when the audience realized they could do whatever they wanted with her body without consequence.
By the end of the performance, the audience had divided into two groups: those who wanted to protect Abramović and those who wished to harm her. A fight erupted in the room after a loaded gun was pointed at her head. It remains unclear whether this incident ended the experiment or if it simply marked the end of the six-hour duration.
Regardless, Abramović exposed some harrowing truths about what people are willing to do to others when there are no consequences.