Artist Who Was 'Ready To Die' After Letting Audience Do Anything For Six Hours Shares Most Terrifying Moment

An artist who allowed strangers to do anything they wanted to her for six hours has opened up about the most disturbing experience she faced during the event.

While most of us would do everything to avoid being touched by people we don’t know, Marina Abramović flipped that idea completely on its head during her 1974 performance in Naples, Italy.

Originally from Serbia, Marina set up her unusual art piece by placing 72 different objects on a table. These ranged from harmless items to those that could potentially cause harm.

Marina placed everything from flowers to guns for people to use YouTube/Marina Abramovic Institute

She then told the audience they could use any of the objects on her however they wanted for six hours, in a piece she called 'Rhythm 0'.

As explained by the Marina Abramović Institute, she told the crowd: "I am an object. You can do whatever you want with me and I will take full responsibility for the 6 hours."

Among the objects were simple, innocent things like flowers and apples, but also far more dangerous ones, such as knives and even a loaded gun, allowing people to decide how far they would take it.

In the beginning, the crowd seemed unsure of what to do, with no one really willing to take the first step. But that changed when one person decided to lift her arm.

Once that barrier was broken, others began joining in. Soon, people were tearing at her clothes, and it’s said that someone even used a knife to cut into her skin, pushing the boundaries further than expected.

Over the course of the six hours, the situation escalated in intensity, leaving Marina to later admit that she was 'ready to die' as things got worse with every passing minute.

"I still have the scars of the cuts," Marina revealed in a 2010 interview with The Guardian, where she described the full extent of her ordeal. At one point, people blindfolded her, and she was also doused in cold water.

Marina also spoke about what she considered to be the most terrifying part of the performance.

"A man pressed the gun hard against my temple. I could feel his intent," she said. "And I heard the women telling the men what to do."

Marina Abramović revealed someone pressed a gun to her temple Elisabetta A. Villa/Getty Images

"The worst part for me," she continued, "was the one man who was there always, just breathing. This, for me, was the most frightening thing."

Marina explained that the whole experience left her not only with physical scars but also with emotional ones.

She said the event gave her a lasting "feeling of fear" and even caused "one streak of white hair" to form.

"Because of this performance, I know where to draw the line so as not to put myself at such risk," she said.

"It was a little crazy," the artist continued. "I realised then that the public can kill you. If you give them total freedom, they will become frenzied enough to kill you."