Constraint City

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‘The pain of everyday life’ is a critical performance addressing public and private space and their paradigm shift in the realms of everyday constraints, therefore the relation of abstract information layers to our everyday life. A chest strap with high torque servo motors (muy fuerte mi amigo!) and a wifi-enabled gaming console (Nintendo DS lite) are worn as fetish object. Thus, when approaching an enclosed encrypted wireless network, the strap reacts immediately. The higher the wireless signal strength, the tighter the jacket becomes. Everyday walks between home, work and leisure are recompiled into a schizogeographic* pain-map. The 21st century flaneur balances along sensual perceived pain and the torture of contemporary Arcades sans fil.

Constraint City Map of Berlin walk, February 2008
Constraint City Map of Berlin walk, February 2008
Exhibition view of Constraint City with map and corset at Kunsthalle Wien, 2007
Exhibition view of Constraint City with map and corset at Kunsthalle Wien, 2007
Exhibition view of Constraint City with map and corset at Kunsthalle Wien, 2007
Exhibition view of Constraint City with map and corset at Kunsthalle Wien, 2007

Credits

Thanks to Gottfried Haider who wrote most of the C software code for the Nintendo DS.
This project received funding from BMUKK Austria, Wien Kultur and Pro Helvetia (travel fund for Mexico exhibition).

Download

You can download maps from different cities where Constraint City has been performed:

There’s a publication wich can be folded into a city map (PDF, 10MB) with articles and contributions by Martin Howser, Femke Snelting, Florian Cramer and Margarete Jahrmann.