iTouch
by ivar_veermae
This work has been commented by 1 curator(s). Read the comments
Title
iTouch
Headline
iTouch
Concept author(s)
Ivar Veermäe
Concept author year(s) of birth
1982
Concept author(s) contribution
Idea + performance + video editing
Concept author(s) Country
Estonia
Other author(s)
Krzysztof Debicki
Other author(s) year(s) of birth
1977
Other author(s) contribution
Camera
Other author(s) Country
Canada
Friendly Competition
Competition category
Mobilization
Competition field
nonacademic
Competition subfield
artist
Subfield description
The work deals with the notions of “smart technology” gaining more and more presence in lives of the people and their environments. The gadgets and screens become almost self-explanatory. The technological objects seem to become more personalized, but the whole body - object interaction sets are defined by the objects design and interface.
Check out the Debt. 2012 outlines of Memefest Friendly competition.
Description of idea
Describe your idea and concept of your work in relation to the festival outlines:
The work is dealing with common human-machine interaction and questions the concepts of constantly being online and also the motion-patterns, that are becoming self-explanatory.
What kind of communication approach do you use?
Im using the context-replacement.
What are in your opinion concrete benefits to the society because of your communication?
I hope that it is raising doupts about "personal devices".
What did you personally learn from creating your submitted work?
I regained for for a moment active physicality and it functioned as short brake from normalized every-day.
Why is your work, GOOD communication WORK?
Because it uses the human-machine communication motion patterns in a abstract way.
Where and how do you intent do implement your work?
I would like to show it to many people and in various spaces - in internet (where it already is), in video screenings, festivals.
Did your intervention had an effect on other Media. If yes, describe the effect? (Has other media reported on it- how? Were you able to change other media with your work- how?)
Not yet directly, but I hope it will.
Curators Comments
Aaron Gach
This work is successful as a video, but even more so as a physical intervention. There is a balance of humor and criticality that makes for successful communication. And, it would certainly serve to create a momentary destabilizing experience for observant passersby.
I was initially reluctant to choose this work as one of the 7 that I selected, due to the fact that Beyond category specifically calls for "participatory projects". However, I feel that this work demonstrates a physical engagement with public space in a manner that translates well both as an action and as documentation. The gesture enacted is equally absurd and critical; perhaps even prophetic of a not-so-distant future landscape.
Seeing this work, I was immediately reminded of Alex Villar’s video/performance work, which I first encountered in 2004 as part of the Interventionists show curated by Nato Thompson. Like Villar, the artist here uses the found environment to illustrate social hypocrisies, influences, and mediated constructs.
Based on the comments in the submission, I am led to believe that the video was the end point (i.e. - the action was secondary). Part of the challenge that this work faces is the tendency to read it as a one-liner. Yet, the power of an "absurd" gesture lies in the ability to destabilize the norm - often through repetition to the point of collapse (or authoritarian interruption). Have you thought about other actions that can be produced/documented accordingly? For example, are there other instances of "context replacement" that you could further build upon?