Book Review: The Museum of Modern Love by Heather Rose

I am no modern art lover – at best I am curious and at worst I am bewildered. However, in reading The Museum Modern Love, I found that I have a new understanding and respect for works that in the past I considered to be little more than publicity stunts.

That is exactly the way I  might have considered Marina Abramovic’s performance art piece that was central to the novel. Abramovic sits in the MoMo in New York for a total of 75 days, gazing into to the eyes of members of the public who choose to take a sit opposite her. The real-life performance was a blockbuster, with thousands of people attending the  performance.

Heather Rose weaves in together the stories of Abramovic and those who watched her, including a man who was grappling with his role and responsibility in the face of his wife’s illness, and a woman whose husband had recently died.

The book tells of the meaning of the artwork for these people, and others, at the same time exploring themes of music, love and loss.

The Museum of Modern Love is both entertaining and illuminating, providing insight into the lives of others, and providing me with a whole new appreciation of modern art, and its place and value in our modern society.