Recently, I was scrolling TikTok and I ran into a video that explained a shocking piece of art that was exhibited almost 50 years ago in Naples, Italy. The video explained how an artist used her body as the primary object of her display, asking audience members to use predetermined objects on her body and way they wanted to. I was horrified and upset by what I learned in that TikTok.

So, naturally, I Googled it. Here’s what I learned.

In 1974, Rhythm 0 (pronounced “Rhythm Zero”) was performed by artist Marina Abramović; it was a total of six hours long.

Performance art is a specific form of art that is meant to be witnessed live and in person — it usually provokes a strong reaction in the audience and is meant to be interpreted in a variety of ways.

In the performance, Abramović stood still and the audience was free to do what they wanted to her using any of the 72 objects laid out on a table in front of her. Some of these items included harmless things like a rose, perfume, honey, bread, or wine; however, other items included scissors, a scalpel, nails, a gun, and even a bullet.

Her instructions to the audience were simple: “There are 72 objects on the table that one can use on me as desired. I am the object. During this period I take full responsibility,” she said.

Abramović explained in an interview later on that the purpose of Rhythm 0 was “to find out how far the public would go”

Abramović said, “at the beginning, the public was very much playing with me. Later on it became more and more aggressive. It was six hours of real horror.” (You can read more about the violence inflicted on her here.)

According to the Guggenheim Musuem, “the performance ceased when audience members grew too aggressive”.

There have been others that have done work like this, such as Yoko Ono, but Abramović went a step further by dehumanizing herself and relinquishing all control of her body to the audience.

At the end of the six hours, Abramović began to move, she started walking through the audience, naked and crying, and everyone ran out the door. She said the audience left, unable to face her as a person. When she had gotten to her hotel that evening, she looked in the mirror to see a big piece of white hair, showing just how much stress she and her body were under during those six hours.

What we can take away from such a performance is this: if we give up control, others will abuse it, and it’s up to us to protect ourselves. While this art was really interesting, it shows the dark side of humanity.