Chilling reason artist let strangers ‘do anything to her’ in dangerous experiment

Warning: This article contains graphic content which some readers may find distressing

A woman considered to be one of the best performance artists of all time once let strangers 'do anything they wanted' with her.

Serbian artist Marina Abramović, now 78, has done all sorts of wild experiments in her time - from cutting her body and letting it bleed on ice, living without food for 12 days, to having nine orgasms in public.

At first glance, you'd think she's just doing the most random s**t humanly possible. But the reality is that each and every single performance highlighted a deeper, often painful, message to the world.

However, her career really kicked off in 1974 after 'Rhythm 0', with the event still being talked about online to this day.

"She still tears up remembering the performance... It's the horrific and sad truth about human nature," one comment read.

Another added: "She was so brave doing this performance."

What was Rhythm 0?

As the performance went on, the public's actions became more extreme, leaving the artist in tears (Marina Abramović Institute/YouTube)

Without a doubt, Rhythm 0 remains as one of the most shocking displays of art you'll see, where members of the public had free reign over her body for six hours without any repercussions.

Spectators had 72 items to choose from and use on the artist that included razors, knives, scissors and even a gun. There were also other things like honey, bread, wine, and perfume.

"There are 72 objects on the table that one can use on me as desired," a note left on the table read.

"Performance: I am the object. During this period I take full responsibility."

After three hours, the mood turned violent when one person cut off her clothes with a razor, which left her nude, while another reportedly used it to slice into her exposed skin.

Someone else also put a gun to her head, with her finger on the trigger.

Why did Marina Abramović want to do Rhythm 0?

During Marina Abramović's 'Rhythm 0,' she allowed the public to do whatever they wanted to her without any consequences (Marina Abramović Institute/YouTube)

"At the beginning, nothing really happened," she reflected on the Marina Abramović Institute YouTube channel.

"The public were really nice. They gave me a rose, they would kiss me, look at me, and the public became more and more wild."

Although things took a sinister turn, Marina said she was ready for this beforehand, and was prepared to sacrifice her life to learn more about human beings.

"I start moving. I start being myself [...] and, at that moment, everybody ran away. People could not actually confront with me as a person," she added.

"The experience I drew from this piece was that in your own performances you can go very far, but if you leave decisions to the public, you can be killed."