OPEN A BOOK,OPEN THE WORLD
𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙪𝙨𝙚𝙪𝙢 𝙤𝙛 𝙈𝙤𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙣 𝙇𝙤𝙫𝙚
by Heather Rose
★小說受「行為藝術之母」瑪莉娜·阿布拉莫維奇 作品啟發
★獲 2017年澳洲文學獎 (Stella Prize) 肯定
Arky 是住在紐約的電影配樂作曲家，他總是沉浸在自己的小小世界裡，除了做音樂之外一竅不通。他一直以為他的婚姻幸福美滿，直到發現突然病重的妻子自己申請住進療養院，與外界隔離並向法院申請禁制令限制他探訪。不知所措的他踏進了紐約現代藝術博物館（MoMA）。這時開設的是行為藝術家瑪莉娜·阿布拉莫維奇 Marina Abramović 的40年回顧展與新作品 The Artist is Present。這件作品由一張桌子、兩張椅子與 Abramović 本人構成。展期間的75天，她每天都會坐在其中一張椅子上並完全靜止，觀者可選擇旁觀或坐在她的對面。Arky 受到這件作品吸引，每天都來博物館觀察坐在藝術家對面的人。認識其他同樣為之著迷來觀展的人並與他們交流後，他逐漸了解自己的生活中到底缺少了什麼以及接下來應該要做的事情。
A mesmerising literary novel about a lost man in search of connection - a meditation on love, art and commitment, set against the backdrop of one of the greatest art events in modern history, Marina Abramovic's The Artist is Present.
'Art will wake you up. Art will break your heart. There will be glorious days. If you want eternity you must be fearless.' From The Museum of Modern Love
Arky Levin is a film composer in New York separated from his wife, who has asked him to keep one devastating promise. One day he finds his way to The Atrium at MOMA and sees Marina Abramovic in The Artist is Present. The performance continues for seventy-five days and, as it unfolds, so does Arky. As he watches and meets other people drawn to the exhibit, he slowly starts to understand what might be missing in his life and what he must do.
This dazzlingly original novel asks beguiling questions about the nature of art, life and love and finds a way to answer them.
