13 BEGINNING
Marisa Tapper
Interactive, Participatory Work, 2015. Audio, Video, Internet
Beginning is a combination of Performance, LARP and internet/computer-generated human interaction experience. Through taking part in the project, whether on social media, the interactive website, or live, as a physical player or viewer, the participant can experience survival in a post-technological era. The storyline, developed from an unpublished original novel, is generated by the players themselves, internet and social media interaction and also designer intervention. The theme relates to the current obsession with survival, apocalyptic visions and dystopian futures,
as evidenced by the plethora of films, TV series and games. The “survival of the fittest” mentality and even some of the socio-economic issues we face today can arguably be attributed to fragmentation of society and loss of real community. Possibly some of these issues are exacerbated by reliance on personal rather than digital interaction. This is a chance for each individual to experience their own strength and to explore ways to heal this fragmentation.