In the basement of the Swiss Institute, a cartoon baby silently works in a colorless mid-century modernist house, this is Alfaith’s “Day in the Life”. The baby’s day is narrated with timestamps that follow an abbreviated 24 hours, but it is otherwise alone in the tastefully decorated space. We observe through a one-way mirror a space that resembles a cell, and the large windows in the baby’s home. The baby completes tasks like working on a laptop, cooking, taking a bath, and watering a tree in the garden. There are layers of disconnection between us and the baby, and the baby and the imagined world outside its space. A rainstorm outside acts at times as a soothing white noise, and at other moments water seeps into the baby’s life. The rain comes into the kitchen and puddles on the floor. Despite the rain the baby waters the tree, in an act of dedication or disconnection. The cutesy design of the baby is at first endearing and lighthearted as viewers observe it through the mirror, but as one spends more time with the baby, the sense of detachment and loneliness becomes more prominent. One wants to be reassured that the baby is content, or even wanting to care for it and relieve it from its responsibilities.
Kris Thomas
I enjoy that you included an accurate description of the room that the “baby” character was in since the space had a lot to do with the overall aesthetic of the piece. It’s interesting to bring up all of the aspects of disconnection physically and narratively. For one, the view is literally disconnected from the piece due to the one way mirror and narratively disconnected by the absurd actions of the baby (watering the tree when it is raining). The feeling of loneliness and concern you mentioned are spot on; somehow this strange video piece makes the viewer emotionally attached to an animated baby.
ReplyDeleteI am really interested in the way that you go about discussing this work, it feels immersive as if we are not only looking at the work but actually inside of it. I like how you play with the contrast between the "cutesy" feelings that the work evokes and the more solemn lonely feelings. It feels poignant when looking at the work, which is certainly not explicit in regards to what we are supposed to feel. I think it could be interesting to incorporate a bit more about the artist and their practice in order to contextualize the work a bit, just because this is such a complex and conceptual work.
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