Documentation of Seth Cluett’s performance at Fridman Gallery (photo courtesy Naroa Lizar/Fridman Gallery)
Back in the late ’90s, I considered going to raves. There were kids at my high school wearing jelly bracelets, wide-legged JNCO skater jeans, and last night’s eyeliner and mascara, smeared and stained. In our 9am homeroom class I could see the multi-colored, ever-flashing lights of last night’s rave bouncing off my classmates’ whites, the power transcendent and somehow luminescent but never quite spiritual. I wanted to be there, but I didn’t. At Fridman Gallery’s ongoing performance series In the Glow of a Breathing Sphere, I experienced a similar feeling toward a custom-built thing called “PRANA” (which means “breath” or the “life force”): a giant glowing sphere set in the middle of the gallery that is activated by the breath of people who step into it. The name of the exhibition refers both to the act of breathing life force into the sphere and to the ongoing series of performances that activate prana energy in other ways.
Like most apps, computers, or other inventions that emphasize the wonders of technology itself and attempt to create excitement around that, “PRANA” is technologically impressive. Conceived and created at B-Reel, the all-male creative team includes Mike Potter (Art Director/Creator), Wes Falik (Producer), Eric Heaton (Technical Director), and developers Charlie Clark and Joe Zhou. The sphere is custom-built with six 450-watt 90 AMP power supplies, a Xenthru respiration sensor on the hardware side, and Javascript animations that connect with the breathing device — all very technologically fun-sounding. But on a human level, “PRANA” doesn’t live up to its promise of a spiritual or meditative experience and neither does it quite breathe new life into the concept. The project ironically speaks to the broader problem of expecting our technologies to offer us post-human experiences in a world that is very much, if not more so today, about fulfilling basic human needs and needing to connect with others who are also looking for the same.
Read the full review on Hyperallergic: http://hyperallergic.com/223850/breathing-life-into-a-high-tech-glowing-sphere/
