Artist and purveyor of strong eye contact Marina Abramović landed in hot water this week after an excerpt from her forthcoming memoir Walk Through Walks was tweeted online. It described Aboriginal Australians as looking "like dinosaurs," among other things, and was promptly criticized for being racist.
The artist apologised via Facebook and will remove the passage from the book's final version, but that hasn't stopped the international coverage -- and condemnation -- from rolling in.
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After the book passage was photographed and shared by art critic Rachel Metzler on Instagram, it didn't take long for the frankly very clever hashtag #TheRacistIsPresent to emerge.
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Describing her time spent in the Northern Territory in 1979, the passage includes jaw-dropping lines like, "To Western eyes they look terrible … they have big torsos (just one bad result of their encounter with Western civilization is a high-sugar diet that bloats their bodies) and sticklike legs."
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The artist has previously told Australian media about her deep respect for the the Pijantjatjara and Pintupi people she spent time with in the desert -- even saying they changed her art practice forever -- but evidently that respect wasn't enough to re-consider publishing her hella problematic description of them.
In her subsequent apology, Abramović said "The description contained in an early, uncorrected proof of my forthcoming book is taken from my diaries and reflects my initial reaction to these people when I encountered them for the very first time way back in 1979,” adding, "It does not represent the understanding and appreciation of Aborigines that I subsequently acquired through immersion in their world and carry in my heart today."
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artist Rebekah Raymond responded in one publication by saying, "This is a classic non-apology. She has not apologised, a simply ‘Sorry’ is not uttered. She has shirked responsibility by attributing the words to ‘an early, uncorrected proof’ as if the words just happened to be there, like she didn’t consciously choose to include them."
Raymond added, "She has demonstrated she values her diary ramblings more so than respecting Aboriginal peoples."
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Similarly, Yindjibarndi artist Katie West told Guardian Australia that the passage was "a perfect example of the continuing effects of colonisation."
Topics Books Racial Justice
