Virtual Window
Christina May Carey
Virtual Window derives from the idea that in the future, idle time no longer exists, as productivity has become the driving force of human existence. However idle time can be purchased and experienced whilst gazing through a virtual window, where the viewer is presented with moving images that induce an oneiric state. Periods for contemplation are cut by fleeting takes of rapid movement, or bright illumination with subliminal messages that remind the viewer to breathe. These brief interim moments conjure a sense of anticipation or anxiety that hides behind periods of waiting. The work is a meditation on the state of anxiety and attention economy that pervades late capitalism.
Touch the Skylight
Christina May Carey
Touch the Skylight ruminates on the experience of calm and contemplation that can be found in waiting, countering the contemporary attitude that waiting is merely lost time. It references screen savers that replicate real-life natural phenomena, providing counterfeit versions of scenes that can be enjoyed in real life, but are rarely observed for prolonged periods. Like Virtual Window, there is a virtual glass screen between the viewer and the expansive scene, altering the perception of gravity, and inducing a naive urge to touch the glass.