“ThreeYearContract” by Taylor Hokanson
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Taylor Hokanson
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- Columbia College Chicago
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Every once in a while, a new technology makes the world a better place without demanding some sort of major trade-off (think Polio vaccinations). More often, however, our advancements require that society shift to accommodate their less desirable effects. ThreeYearContract calls our attention to the impossible promise of the smartphone: simultaneous presence both here and somewhere else. TYC is made up of two identical units, each appearing to be no more than a simple block of wood. When an audience member pressed their forhead against one of these blocks, it places a cellular phone call to its counterpart. This call can be answered when a second participant adopts the same peculiar stance as the first. The work’s absurd interactive requirement forces both its users to commit fully to the conversation at hand, and encourages reflection on a growing culture of tele-absence.
