Kinetic Fart (Bewegungspfad Ungestüm) is a performance featuring non-human actors. It is inspired by the conceptual world of technological posthumanism, where humanity has become obsolete and replaced by an artificial alterity [1]. The main actors in the performance are discarded air-refreshers commonly found in restroom visits. They can be identified based on their non-human flatulence sounds emitted at regular intervals and their artificial scent notes.
In the work, air refresher of various types levitate in a mobile. As a kinetic sculpture, they draw attention to the workings of gravity and the uncertainty of equilibrium states. Simultaneously, the mobile functions “as a symbolic depiction of orbiting planets or particles held in place by unseen forces made visible” [2] The achievement of this state of equilibrium is directly present in the mobile, where even the slightest change in one of the elements leads to a change in the entire system.
At this point, the programmed machine intervenes and with a discharge of spray breaks loose from the rigid confine of obedience: the pre-programmed spray intervals of the individual room fresheners unpredictably alter the composition in space. The resulting performance is composed of both, kinetic energy and artificial scents emitted as fragrances such as “Cherry Blossom Magic”, “Summer Pleasure” or “Silk & Lily Freshness”.
In analogy to Jackson Pollock’s action paintings, where the focus shifts from the encircled artwork to the art event itself, this marking the beginning of performance art [3], programmed machines here rotate in circles, which can also be understood as fossils of the future, revealing both human and non-human creative forces at play.
[1] Loh, Janina (2018), S.12. Trans-und Posthumanismus. Junius Verlag, Hamburg.
[2] Königgalerie, Wien (2022). Alicja Kwade – MEDIUM.
[3] Reckwitz, Andreas (2012), S.94. Die Erfindung der Kreativität: Zum Prozess gesellschaftlicher Ästhetisierung. Suhrkamp Verlag.
Installation at ‘Alten Spital’ in Viechtach as part of the exhibition COMMON SPACE: LAND – STADT.
Exhibitions
◦ COMMON SPACE: LAND – STADT, Altes Spital, Viechtach, DE, 2023