Last night Marina Abramović hosted friends and enemies alike at her 70th birthday party, which filled the winding staircases of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum of Art in New York City. Abramović is an icon, known for groundbreaking performances in which she sliced her own hands with a knife, stood still while encouraging visitors to do anything they desired, sat making direct eye contact with guests at the Museum of Modern Art eight hours a day for three months, and prowled a room full of blindfolded visitors. Appropriately, her birthday party was as enigmatic and interactive as her lifelong practice.

Invitees were given gold leaf to be placed directly on their lips as part of a larger artwork by Abramovic titled Golden Lips in collaboration with Kreëmart, a dessert collective. This was not a good look for

” target=”_blank”>men with ” target=”_blank”>beards. The party kicked off with 70 minutes of silence, broken by a short speech from Abramović, followed by British artist and singer ANOHNI’s stunning rendition of “My Way,” popularized by Frank Sinatra, and later, Sid Vicious. Then management broke out the champagne and the birthday girl gave the cameras the bird for the awesome photo above. Guests were then sent home with chocolate in the form of Abramovic’s mouth, produced in conjuction with Kreëmart and Ladurée, a luxury bakery. 

Abramović turned 70 on November 30, but last night was the official celebration, attended by artists Andres Serrano, Martha Tuttle, Nir Hod, Dustin Yellin, Shirin Neshat, as well as actress Naomi Campbell, magician David Copperfield, and Monica Lewinsky. 
 

Follow Marina Abramović here and check out The Creators Project’s Instagram to find your next favorite artist.

Related:

A Brief History of Men Whining Over Women Artists Winning

Death: Marina Abramović’s Final Performance?

Marina Abramović and Mark Ruffalo Speak Out in New Climate Change Documentary