Client
Centre d'Arts Santa Mònica
Year
2024
Tag
Installations
A recurring goal of ours in our works and installations is to foster debate - rather than provide answers, we often try to raise questions. This time, we were invited by the Arts Centre of Santa Mònica to design an installation that would create a space for discussion in the heart of Barcelona - a place open to all, and for all to participate.
We wanted to craft an experience in which questions are the main element, and their answers are collectively imagined by all of the visitors - a prompt to rethink the very concept of an arts centre in today’s world. Through this collective exercise of self-reflection, the aim was to open new lines of debate, to inspire future exhibitions and activities at the Santa Mònica.
The winning answer takes it all, the rest is left in shreds
Every week, the Santa Mónica team curates a question - either of its own design, or selected from the list of suggestions submitted by past visitors to the exhibit.
Over the course of seven days, all the visitors are invited to engage in a democratic dialogue, casting their vote between two possible answers - like a referendum. At the end of the week, the answer with the fewest votes is shredded and its remnants are put on display, alongside the original question and the winning answer.
A space to come up with questions
For a visitor to propose a question, all they have to do is fill out a form, with the question and its suggested answers, and leave it in a dedicated mailbox as part of the installation. To each submission, is assigned a specific color, based on the theme it addresses:
Yellow: Protest and resistance
Pink: Culture and society
Green: The planet and sustainability
Red: Arts centers and institutions
An installation evolving over the course of a year
Week by week, the installation grows and transforms, capturing the evolving opinions of Barcelona’s citizens on a range of themes. It is scheduled to be on display for a full year, after which it will have created a visual representation of the city’s collective voice throughout this time.
Question it, question yourself, question us
Which do you think is more powerful, when it comes to making a positive difference?
Number of answers:
