Performance and conceptual artist Marina Abramovi? recently spoke with Spike Art Magazine about her 2013 partnership with Jay Z, when she assisted him in creating his own rendition of her 2010 work The Artist Is Present: the “Picasso Baby” video.
Apparently, though, the seemingly friendly collaboration was more transactional than it first appeared. “[Jay Z] adapted my work only under one condition: that he would help my institute,” Abramovi? told Spike, “which he didn’t.”
Jay-Z Performs ‘Picasso Baby’ at NYC’s Pace Gallery: Watch
“He just completely used me. And that wasn’t fair,” she continued. Though the artist did not say outright that she regretted working with Jay, she did admit to feeling “very pissed.”
“In the end it was only a one-way transaction,” Abramovi? said of the performance. “I will never do it again, that I can say. Never. I was really naive in this kind of world. It was really new to me, and I had no idea that this would happen. It’s so cruel, it’s incredible. I will stay away from it for sure.”
Jay Z Premieres ‘Picasso Baby’ Video: Watch
Jay Z’s representatives did not respond to requests for comment.