Coda

Coda, the passage that brings a music movement to an end, marks the beginning of the series. The first video channel shows the front deck and its ship flag announcing the various possible destinations. Another video reveals the rear view of a moving ship, with undulating water wakes, boundless ocean and sky.

The four staircases in the installation are a fragmented version of the Penrose stairs, a spatial model that violates the rules of Euclidean geometry. The illusion of ascending and descending on Penrose stairs is similar to the built-in staircases on cruise ships which appear identical and intentionally generate a sense of disorientation and confinement. As in a shopping mall, these architectural decisions are meant to be labyrinthine, encouraging the ongoing search for entertainment and consumable goods. Taking apart the Penrose stairs demystifies the incomprehensible geometry and symbolically disrupts the profit-driven design intentions of cruise ships.

Navigating the uncharted waters simulated by virtual time-space, the ship constitutes a perpetual attempt to leave the past behind. and move towards an uncertain future.