Aylin Cakiroglu This has been the best immersive art installation in 2017, if not this century. The creative genius of the team that managed to evoke this extraordinary experience of feelings of loss, greed, alienation, and anger can only be admired. The giant cheeseboard dismantled preconceived materialistic expectations in the post truth era and makes us look into the ugly mirror of hyper consumerism. In a time where nothing is certain and values are being redefined, the hiatus between preconceptions and corporeality lies at the heart of modern capitalist society’s struggle with humanity.
Finding yourself trapped in a seemingly endless queue for limited resources sets the scene, and it is not long before you find yourself confronted with your own ugly impulse to advance to the top at the expense of others. This alienation with ‘the others’ is reinforced by oppressively crowded spaces, where the masses are directed by victims of the gig economy through a nightmarish labyrinth of crowds and queues and will leave you utterly disorientated. Using the symbolism of cats and mice as uniforms for the workers on the lowest rang of society is maybe too obvious but left us with a feeling of understanding the degradation of people we hold accountable for the mistakes of the powerful.
The dramatic walk out of the DJs and mice evoked a powerful and lasting experience of disenfranchisement and alienation. The giant cheeseboard not only provided a unique experience during the performance but made its mark by creating a meta-reality with lasting impact by projecting an alternative interpretation of the event and thus amalgamating capitalism, post-truth and alternative facts into an impressive experience that will stay with you for a long time.