Vis.[un]necessary force_1.01

Interactive, participatory, multimedia installation.
100 portable digital speakers in the shape of a Caracal 9 mm pistol [white PLA 3D prints], 100 MicroSD cards, 100 mp3 sounds, texts, map, variable structure.
Dimensions: variable.
Duration: variable.

Vis.[un]necessary force_1.01 (V.[u]nf_1.01) is a real-recorded space transformed into an imagined realm of overwhelming violence. The data collected and the 100 purpose-made (3D-printed) gun-shaped [Caracal F 9x19 mm] sculptural objects form the body of the work. Sound devices [loudspeakers] are installed inside the objects. This artistic research project addresses contemporary violence from the citizen’s perspective. It derives from shootings that people accidentally chanced upon, recorded with their cell phones and posted on YouTube. V.[u]nf_1.01 merges users’ involvement in the emotional experience of violence with the hybrid, networked space of a multimedia installation organized with sound, space, sound sculptures, images, and texts.

The design of the work is interactive, participatory, and performative. Interactive and participatory in terms of audience engagement, as the visitors can activate the gun-shaped sound devices, thereby becoming an integral part of the artwork. Participatory, also in terms of the creative process, as the sound data were generated by multiple individuals, who thus contributed significantly to the creation of the work. Performative, as the visitor’s behaviour shapes the experience of the artwork with the outcome of the sounds played determined by their interactions.

The archive that underpins V.[u]nf_1.01 is as crucial as the sound devices that play the sounds. It includes printed elements that provide detailed descriptions of the incidents—the sources of sounds, data related to the original YouTube files—and a map of Mexico.

Ryszard W. Kluszczyński, curator.

Website of project: https://www.vis-unnecessaryforce.org/

This iteration marked the first time the artist developed her own sound-reproduction hardware through additive sculpture and 3D modelling.

Vis.[un]necessary force_1.01 was exhibited at:

• Arsenal Galeria Miejska, Poznań, 24 May–7 July 2024.
• PIKSEL Festival, Kunstskolen i Bergen, Bergen, 17–20 November 2022.
• Vincent Price Art Museum, Los Angeles, 30 April–30 July 2022.
• Casa Refugio Citlaltépetl, Mexico City, 2–28 October 2019.
• Sala Ricson, HANGAR Centre/Production/Research/Visual Arts, Barcelona, 8 May 2019.
• Museo de Arte Moderno, Mexico City, 31 October 2018.
• ZKM | Center for Art and Media, Karlsruhe, 28–30 September 2017.

Informative video.
Duration: 3:05 minutes.
URL: https://youtu.be/IvviD-8xEFs

Stereo sound sample.
Duration: 3:06 minutes.
URL: https://on.SoundCloud.com/BZurpxmfkrzELeKUA

Video documentation. In the Absence of the State, 24 May–7 July 2024, Galeria Miejska Arsenał, Poznań, Poland.
Duration: 1:40 minutes.
URL: https://youtu.be/gZpNFp5Uk-U