»G80« – in reference to various intergovernmental forums – is an interactive installation inspired by war and strategy games such as Buckminster Fuller's »World Game,« which aims to achieve an equitable distribution of global resources.
Created in the cybernetic era in the early 1960s, the »World Game« embodied the promise of computation and mathematical models for solving socio-political and ecological problems such as overpopulation, energy, consumption, access to services, resources, etc – which, with today’s supercomputers and AI, might be achievable. »G80« questions this technocratic hypothesis, which is rooted in an exhausted techno-capitalist system that refuses to look beyond mathematical models. How far are we willing to go with computation in order to optimise global governance?
The artwork features a console with a matrix of 80 motorised sliders reminiscent of a control room. Each slider corresponds to a variable. At the ends of the sliders, the »+« and »-« signs indicate the stakes or values. While some variables are directly inspired by those developed by Buckminster Fuller and his students, others envisioned by Fragmentin point to some of the most pressing issues today, from ecology and migration to gender equality or the development of technological innovations.
In this device, the sliders act as both inputs and outputs. Visitors are invited to interact with the work and playfully attempt to »stabilise« the world by changing the value of each variable. But all the sliders correlate with each other. When one variable is changed, others move as well, without any direct intervention, suggesting a deep and complex interdependence. When no-one plays with the matrix, it activates and alters the position of its 80 sliders to form geometric patterns, seemingly taunting surrounding visitors. With no visual manifestations other than the names of the variables and their quantities, visitors are thus encouraged to mentally visualise the concrete impact their choices could have on the Earth.
Part of the Mudac collection. Presented with support from Pro Helvetia.
CTM 2026 Exhibition
24.1. – 22.3.2026 | Free entry
daadgalerie & Kunstraum Kreuzberg