Presentation

Online Premiere of Seeing I: The Other (Mark Farid)

February 4, 2021, 11:45 am - February 4, 2021, 6:45 pm
Seeing I by artist Mark Farid. Photography by Milla Lewis
Seeing I by artist Mark Farid. Photography by Sophie le Roux.
Seeing I by artist Mark Farid. Photography by Sophie le Roux.

On 4th December 2020, from the moment Ibrahima wakes up, to the moment Ibrahima goes to sleep, his 360 degree, first person point of view life will be shown online. VR compatible. Seeing I: The Protagonists is shown for the first time on Friday, 4.12. 11:45 - 18:45 CET here: seeing-i.com and werkleitz.de

Seeing I: The Protagonists (2020) is part of the project Seeing I (2021), where artist Mark Farid for 24-hours a day, for 14-days, will wear a virtual reality headset, experiencing life through the eyes and ears of one person; hearing only what they hear and seeing only what they see for two weeks. Seeing I: The Protagonists explores the movement of people in 2020; how different cultures, societies, and languages affects one’s sense of self, and – especially during the coronavirus pandemic – the ability to share in one’s experience and world, only through digital technologies. It shows different people’s lives from around the world streamed online, in a first-person point of view, 360-degree field of view, 24-continuous-hour recording. Exploring how people respond to continuous and constant self-surveillance, whilst also testing bespoke technologies in real-life circumstances.

The EMARE residency has allowed Farid to trial the use of the bespoke recorder internationally for the first time, allowing Farid to further understand the ways in which the personal characteristics, varying cultures and the location of the participants will help determine the final selection of the protagonists for Seeing I (2021). Farid asks the participants to simply wear the recorder and live their life as they otherwise normally would.

Starting on 4th December 2020, the first life shown on seeing-i.com will be that of Ibrahima (36), an asylum seeker from West Africa. In 2003, Ibrahima moved to the north east of England to avoid war, where he was granted indefinite right to remain by the UK government. In 2008 he had his indefinite right to remain status revoked. In 2015, Ibrahima had his indefinite right to remain re-instated by the Home Office; however, he was not given back his passport or national insurance number. For the last 12 years, Ibrahima has been unable to work, leave the UK, or see his children.

The next life shown on seeing-i.com will be on 14th January 2021.

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