In 1997, at the Venice Biennale, Marina Abramovic presented a very important performance entitled Balkan Baroque, a performance that referred to the wars in the former Yugoslavia. For six hours per day over four days, in the center of a dark underground space, on top of a pile of 1,500 cattle bones the artist washed the bones one by one with soap and water, removing meat and cartilage residues with a metallic brush. She wore a white robe that became dirty as the process progressed, and sang songs from the various regions of her united homeland that were now separate states. Two sinks and a bathtub full of water were also in the rooms, while three videos were projected on the walls. However, the bones were the dominant element, both with their volume and their stench, that smell of death that made staying in the space unbearable. There is a paradox characterizing postWorld War II artists: on one hand, they showed openness towards the use of almost any material available, with a passion reminiscent of romantic antiquarians who piled up all kinds of antiquities; on the other hand, they did not appreciate the use of bones. As a result, works like Abramovic’s appear as exceptions… And yet bones were one of the first raw materials on which humans exercised their ingenuity before conquering metalworking. The oldest artefacts in all cultures are made of stone, clay, wood or bone / antler / teeth. To be continued...