(note of 1989 presented at the Beaubourg Gallery - Paris, in
December 1989 with the installation Yes/No)
The memories of objects attract the attention of the viewers by their binary
representation which are displayed directly on the computer screen.
YES corresponds to the binary number 1 in the computer's memory,
NO corresponds to the binary number 0.
Latent memory or active memory, memory of the computer or memory of the viewer...
where is the true memory of the object located?
Installation:
10 computers are arranged in parallel in the form of an arc, opening out towards
the viewers.
Each machine presents the contents of a memory, from 'le dessus de tabouret
et la fourche' by Duchamp to 'B/FB' by Lavier.
The memory fragments are displayed on the screens in the form of 0 and 1 gradually
with the reading of the memory.
state 1: latent memory (general state)
The memory is displayed in silence, the viewer questions the memory by pressing
the button on the mouse, the memory responds YES for 1 and NO for 0.
state 2: active memory (for 8 minutes every hour + 16 minutes, every
hour + 32 minutes, every hour + 48 minutes)
The memory is displayed on the computer screen and sends the sound YES for 1
and NO for 0. The 10 memories display their contents and speak successively
beginning with memory n°1 to memory n°10.
The process ends after 8 minutes.
The viewer will be attentive to:
- the simultaneity of sounds, when all the units say YES or NO
- the gaps of sounds, rearrangements, rhythms of memories..
The viewer may stop the sound and accelerate the sequence by pressing on the
button of the mouse.