From 18 to 23 October, an immersive space for critique and vision will unfold with DOK Neuland at the Museum der bildenden Künste Leipzig (MdbK). “THX 4 Nothing” will feature six VR experiences, two AR experiences, and a 360° film with themes that expose rigid patterns of thought and behaviour, break down outdated structures, tell stories and map out optimistic future scenarios.
Present-day challenges — such as climate crisis fallout, human rights violations, corrupt systems, persecution and flight, limiting gender roles and a lack of safe spaces — have gained worldwide attention. Access to knowledge and opportunities for exchange are also at an all-time high. Yet all too often, nothing changes.
This observation forms the foundation of the curatorial concept developed by Lars Rummel and Marie Hinkelmann. The exhibition focuses on both inaction at the political and institutional level, as well as individual responsibility and the limits of personal agency. The work of the featured artists sheds light on different realities of life and asks what condition we want the world to be in when we hand it over to future generations.
"By experiencing with the whole body, XR works move and touch very directly. They turn spectators into participants," say curators Rummel and Hinkelmann, who believe that the works have the potential to make knowledge tangible in a special way.
Three of the XR works share the theme of humans and nature. The AR experience "Seven Grams" disassembles smartphones into their individual parts — with the help of participants’ own smartphones. It takes visitors to the Democratic Republic of Congo and reveals which natural and human resources the tech industry needs for its innovations. The VR parable "The Miracle Basket" begins with a past in harmony with the earth contrasted with the carelessness of Western consumer society, which follows the absurd conviction that humans can live independently of nature. Here, blind consumption and destruction meet with hope. In “Kusunda", the Nepalese shaman Lil Bahadur and his granddaughter Hima dedicate themselves to reviving his mother tongue. Beyond simple communication, the work is about identity, tradition and awareness of one's own history. Through interactive voice control, visitors can become a human archive of this indigenous language.
Queerness is at the centre of three other works that report on marginalising and discriminatory spaces of experience. The autotheoretical essay "[Posthuman Wombs]" questions stereotypical notions of pregnancy and speculates on non-binary reproductive scenarios. The AR experience "Dragzina" centres on the queer community in Russia, which faces an increasingly hostile social climate, where it is tabooed and criminalised. It offers a digital safe space for the local drag scene to perform without fear of violence. Finally, the 360° film "In the Mist" turns a group sex scene in a gay sauna into a real-surreal stage for lust and reflection about sex-positive spaces, individual desire and a personal sense of morality.
The exhibition is completed by three works that serve as projection surfaces for fears, insecurities, and the need for control. The VR experience "Control Negative" subjects visitors to a psychological experiment: a voice that does not allow any backtalk triggers an increasing sense of unease, exposing control as an illusion. In "All Unsaved Progress Will Be Lost”, text fragments float above a sea of flowers in a deserted city. Before they coalesce to form the story of a woman who refused to leave her home after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, they open up an associative space of one’s own fears. The VR experience "On the Morning You Wake (to the End of the World)" is also based on a real incident: on 13 January 2018, 1.4 million people in Hawaii were warned of a nuclear threat via text message. For 38 minutes, everyday life came to a standstill and panic ensued until it became clear that the message was a false report.
The scenography of the exhibition has again been created in collaboration with the artist Paula Gehrmann. Her modular installation "Display" (THX 4 Nothing, 2022) places the individual works of the group exhibition in relation to each other, creating a holistic sense of space.
During the festival week, "THX 4 Nothing" will be presented in the basement of the MdbK from Tuesday to Sunday (18 to 23 October) with free admission. The exhibition is regularly open from 11 am to 6 pm, and on Wednesday from 12 pm to 8 pm.
DOK Neuland is part of DOK's young talent programme, created in cooperation with SLM. DOK Leipzig would also like to thank the US Consulate DOK Leipzig, MDR Media, Zed Up, Logando, VR Cover and Werkleitz for their support. As in previous years, the exhibition space has been provided by the MdbK. Many thanks also to all the artists involved in the exhibition and to the XR community in general.
Information on all XR experiences: DOK Neuland
