Marina Abramović: Transforming Energy

Marina Abramović makes history in 2026 as the first living female artist to be honored with a major exhibition at the Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venice. Transforming Energy, presented on the occasion of the 61st Venice Biennale, marks the artist's 80th birthday and establishes a profound dialogue between her pioneering performance art and the Renaissance masterpieces that have shaped Venice's cultural identity. Curated by Shai Baitel, Artistic Director of the Modern Art Museum (MAM) Shanghai, in close collaboration with the artist, the exhibition unfolds both in the permanent collection galleries and in the temporary exhibition spaces — an absolute first in the institution's history. At the heart of Transforming Energy lies the encounter between past and present, the material and the immaterial, body and spirit. Visitors are invited to experience a series of interactive "Transitory Objects" — beds and stone structures embedded with crystals — by lying down, sitting, or standing on them, activating what Marina Abramović defines as a "transmission of energy." Iconic works such as Imponderabilia (1977), Rhythm 0 (1974), Light/Dark (1977), Balkan Baroque (1997), and Carrying the Skeleton (2008) are presented alongside projections of historical performances, while new creations produced for the occasion highlight her long-standing exploration of endurance, vulnerability, and transformation. One of the exhibition's highlights is the presentation of Pietà (with Ulay) (1983), placed in direct dialogue with Pietà (ca. 1575–76) by Titian, the artist's final unfinished masterpiece. This historic juxtaposition, marking 450 years since Titian's Pietà, reinterprets Renaissance archetypes of suffering, transcendence, and redemption through a contemporary lens.