Interventionists Chapter 4

Critical Art Ensemble 

“Our work has been quite focused on how surveillance will act as a means of body invasion-that every strand of DNA in our bodies, every molecule will be visualized, mapped and ordered to better serve capitalist interests.”

A lot of research is funded by companies who want more information on products they manufacture and their effects. How many times have we heard on the news about things like, new study finds coffee prevents heart disease, or something similar. 

subRoza

“For sR a central concern is also the ways in which biotech and various digital technologies affect the lives, livelihoods, bodies, roles and subjectivities of women in different ways than they may for other sectors of the populations. The bodies of women have literally become parts-supply and production laboratories for many aspects of the reprotec, stem cell and cloning biotech industry.”

I honestly don’t believe this is such a new idea. Forever, people have been asking women to provide them with children, mothers want grandbabies, men want heirs. Now, it's even more commercialized and widespread, asking women to donate parts of their body for this research in an extremely difficult time.

Critical Art Ensemble: Free Range Grain

This project aims to shed some light on food production, as it affects everyone. I think it goes mostly unresearched and unquestioned by the majority, considering it healthy if it's gluten-free or organic. But most people don’t know what it really means, consuming something that is non-GMO (genetically modified organism). We modified bananas to fit into a more appealing shape so people would buy them in supermarkets, but we still get to call them organic if they’re not in their original shape. Companies now are forming to sell those “ugly” produce items that get passed up on if they’re sold in store, at a cheaper price.

The Interventionists, Chapter 3

 Krzysztof Wodiczko 

“In essence, Dis-Armor allows the users to “face” those whom they ordinarily could not, and thus acts as a catalyst–or metaphor–for difficult dialogue.”

I like the idea of an art piece that creates a meaningful interaction between people, like how this piece was used to get interviews of people of Middle Eastern countries after 911, considering how dangerous it was for them especially at this time of high Islamophobia. Talking to someone’s back is usually considered rude but for some, public speaking or communication is crippling.

The Yes Men

“No land on earth may be considered free, if freedom means to engage in activities that endanger the well-being of corporate enterprise. So long as, and only so long as, nations understand their place on earth as being in service of, and at the beck of, the driving forces of economics, so shall these nations be afforded a place at the right hand of power.” 

It’s hard to imagine something we do in our regular lives that is not just a part of capitalism. Why do we go to school? To be skilled enough to be hired at a company. Why do we go to work? To buy things we think we need (because let’s be honest, its rare to buy just the necessities, its fun to treat yourself to something you want, but why do you want that thing?). Government officials are pushing for people to go back to physical classes and work, even though we’ve proven that working at home is an option and feasible. Why? Because if we can work from home, we don’t need all those big skyscrapers of office buildings they spent so much on. 

Center for Tactical Magic: The Ultimate Jacket

The Ultimate Jacket, made in 2004, is a clothing piece with around 50 pockets in it. As part of Center for Tactical Magic’s (CTM) identity of “magicians, ninjas, artists and private investigators,” I feel this piece really suits their mission. As a group all about inspiring social revolution through actions of the citizens, I like the idea of clothing meant to assist in this. I remember during the summer of 2020, a lot of Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests included warnings from social media about how to protect yourself there, including face painting to avoid detection from cameras, or turning off your location services on your phone. It’s a bit apocalyptic to think about having to use these means as a way of protecting yourself in a digital age, but even physically, who knows what steps you’d need to take. This jacket seems very practical and durable, whatever you need, you can carry it, and protect it. 

Intervention 2 Description

For my second intervention, I really want to create a poster that mentions how confusing mask mandates and COVID policies have been lately. Sure, the state says I don’t have to wear a mask at school anymore and that people shouldn’t be judged for their choice, but is it safe to or are we just pretending everything is okay? I wanted to put signs of mixed messaging near signs of required masks, maybe in GSUB where I’ve seen a few.