Patterns, Warnings, Nothing, 2016

single-channel video, 12 minutes

dimensions variable

​

On February 24th 1942, radar operators detected something in the night sky off the coast of Los Angeles triggering a blackout, a curfew, the arrest of men of Japanese descent, and the release of thousands of rounds of anti-aircraft shells over the city.

​

Hired performers re-stage location specific vignettes from the 1942 newspaper clippings. WWII re-enactor-hobbyists march through parks and play Sony's 2011 Battle: LA video game.

​

As the work progresses; air banners are digitally inserted in Los Angeles skylines, performers hired to re-stage detainment appear on the couch in a re-enactor-hobbyist's home. The evolving porousness between realities points to overarching questions about the ethics of treating traumas as sites for fantasy and play.