Guns, pig’s blood and razors: Art lovers in Turkey oppose exhibition of ‘satanic’ Serbian artist

Controversial Serbian performance artist Marina Abramovic’s first exhibition in Turkey at Istanbul's Sakıp Sabancı Museum has sparked a debate among art lovers after the artist was accused of conducting satanic rituals.

The exhibition titled "Flux," was scheduled to be held from Jan. 31 to April 26, however, it was postponed as Turkey temporarily closed museums to visitors to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Art lovers are now opposing the reopening of the hotly-debated exhibition as the country recently eased restrictions, and museums and cultural sites were once again opened to the public.

"Created over decades of research on performance and immaterial art, Marina Abramović deems ‘The Method’ to be her masterpiece, and the audience will hold a central place in the section where they will be presented with new experiences,” wrote the museum on its official website.

73-year-old Abramovic is globally-known for her controversial works and disturbing acts of performance art.

In the 1990s, Abramovic put on a series of performances where she used pig’s blood to write phrases such as “With a sharp knife cut deeply into the middle finger of your left hand eat the pain” and “Fresh morning urine sprinkle over nightmare dreams” on the walls of museums.

During her "Rhythm 0" performance in 1974, she stood still next to a table on which a total of 72 objects were arranged and the audience was permitted to use those objects freely on her body, including a razor and a loaded gun.

Abramovic also came under fire after posing for a photograph with a naked child, sparking accusations of pedophilia.

The artist denies all allegations saying, “I’m outraged, because this is taken completely out of my context.Anybody who wants can read my memoirs and find out that [my work] is far away from Satanism.”