About Cellular Trans_Actions:

Telephones, with their rich social history arguably continue to be the most ubiquitous communication technology used by humans. With the introduction of cellular phones, established analogue, centralized systems have been most visibly fragmented and many social environments have been changing in radical ways. Issues of public and private communication have been amplified while fear of health hazards loom. With no social protocols for cell phone use in public spaces established, constant sounds of interruptions have become a daily collective performance, whether we are using the phones or responding to someone in close proximity receiving a call. These phones are in fact radios and the technological structures of cellular transmission is hexagonal, as in natural systems, such as bee-hives and buckyballs.

"Cellular Trans_Actions" performance / talk focuses on issues dealing with real time, physical space interruptions, and the performative aspects of everyday life. The approach is one of a "ready made" performance by audience members who are requested to leave their cell phones on and not to restrain themselves from placing calls if they feel compelled to communicate with someone at any moment during thetalk. They are also given phone numbers of other audience members to break the usual communication in public spaces. The conversations happening are streamed live to the net and archived for later use. Much is
left to chance, depending on the location and the number of audience members who have their phones on.

Cellular trans_actions is context driven, with differences emerging from various geographical locations / cultures / languages. The last talk | performance took place at the Edith Russ Haus on September 14, 2001. Audience members were asked to discuss issues around September 11th in their native language, leaving the artist out of the conversation. On July 3rd, Cellular Trans_Actions is taking place at the Lab in San Francisco.


91101


AFI


The Lab