Marina Abramović Institute apologises to Jay Z

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2015/may/20/jay-z-substantial-donation-maria-abramovic

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The Marina Abramović Institute, the body in charge of building a performance art centre in Hudson, New York, has issued an apology to both Jay Z and Abramović herself after it failed to inform the Serbian performance artist about a donation the rapper made to her proposed art institute.

Related: Marina Abramović: Jay Z 'completely used me'

Abramović had complained that she reprised her performance art piece The Artist is Present for the rapper’s 2013 video Picasso Baby on the condition that Jay Z would help her achieve her aim of building the institute, which will be dedicated to the study of the kind of long-duration performance art which Abramović has made famous. It has already been the subject of a Kickstarter fund, which quickly raised over $600,000.

Abramović told Spike magazine that the Jay Z collaboration was a “one-way transaction” and that she had felt used.

On Wednesday however, an art dealer and producer on the video said that Jay Z had made a large donation to the institute.

Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn – the founder of minimalist gallery Salon 94 – told Artnet she had a receipt which confirmed that Jay Z had given a “substantial donation”.

A subsequent press release from the Marina Abramović Institute admitted it failed to inform the artist of the donation. The short statement read: “Marina Abramović was not informed of Shawn ‘Jay Z’ Carter’s donation from two years ago.”

It continued: “We are sincerely sorry to both Marina Abramović and Shawn “Jay Z” Carter for this, and since then we have taken to [sic] appropriate actions to reconcile this matter.”

Jay Z has yet to comment on the saga.