SOUL JUNK is an immersive 3-channel audio/video installation that explores the raw emotions, power & intent conveyed & betrayed by the human voice & facial expression. In the age of the selfie, SOUL JUNK places you inside an aging female's mind at work, one long oppressed by a power that needs to prevail at all costs.
Confessions about family trauma are set against observations about the cocksure attitudes of those in power. The soul crushing effect of narcissistic & patriarchal behavior is laid bare; exposing the political, economic & ethical landscape of our time, where decisions by power brokers in government or corporations prevail at the expense of individuals, families & communities.
Audio spotlight speakers focus sound physically & aurally. You walk in and out of its beam. The speaker/projections triangulate. Where the focused beam of two speakers cross over, you hear the narrative of two video projections. Each video is understood more acutely, the further you stand away from the speaker, allowing you to experience the hive & the clarity of one. Mimicking the chatter of the mind, this complicates our understanding. Video is projected onto sculptural materials, creating a fractured image. Opposing ideas are hurled against one another in rapid fire. Visual & sonic structure amplifies narrative juxtaposition. Not always understanding the narrative is an intention of this work; echoing the information overload of our times. Akin to synaptic firing in the brain, new neural pathways are forged.
SOUL JUNK exposes the limits of personal choice as it intersects with the collective choices made by a society. For example, Voting: a population’s choice for government is up against the industrial complex of lobbying, social data mining, influence peddling, media bias, institutionalized suppression, economic repression & colonization. How do personal behavior, corporate & national interests, and various forms of terrorism drive politics? How have these forces driven us to the present state of things? When & where are the borders between terror, abuse & negligence blurred & crossed.