Fit In

A treadmill is positioned in the middle of an empty space. In front of the treadmill is placed a screen. It is no coincidence that this situation reminds the beholder of a scene from a gym (fitness studio). Of course, the issue of self-optimisation is a major task in this video installation. But it is not the only one.

The title also reflects on fitting in, of being part of society (a society that operates more and more on social media platforms). This also raises the question: should it be the top priority in life to adapt to a standard, to bend ourselves to fulfil the norm?

The People increasingly interact in virtual spaces (on social media platforms) most of the time, therefore finding that they are in daily virtual loops, which are themselves embedded in the daily loops of the real, non-digital world.

The world is running in circles. The world is running in such circles, that you could think that history is repeating itself, over and over again. At the same time, technical progress and digital exchange are unstoppable and pick up speed, minute by minute. Humans strive to follow this speed by boosting their bodies with endorphins, which they release by excessively practicing diverse types of sport. They want to be able to meet the challenge of this increasing tempo and prevent the possibility of falling off the rushing train of technical progress. More and more people nowadays are looking for physical exercise, to perfect themselves, in hope to establish the optimal conditions, to keep up with this enormous pace of the world– in fact, to shine.

Set–up description:

As long as the treadmill is motionless the viewer can only see the log–in site of a social media platform (Facebook’slog–in page), and a request to step onto the treadmill to start the video installation.

As soon as someone steps onto the treadmill and starts to walk or run, the image on the screen changes from the login page to a social media account (a fake account which was previously set up by the artist especially for ‘Fit in’). If the participant runs at a slow speed, this social media news feed is scrolled from the top to the bottom at a very high speed– so high, that it is impossible to follow or even read the news feed. As soon as the person on the treadmill runs faster and faster, the scrolling movement of the social media feed starts to slow down, making it possible to follow and read these online posts. But the point is, that for the fast running person, who might be out of breath and stressed out, it is still impossible follow the news feed, because she/he is so exhausted and dizzy. So the question now is: Is the beholder, who is currently interacting with the installation, able to find a medium speed, where she/he is in the physical and mental state to participate in both levels of the video installation? Therefore the point is to find an individual ‘medium speed’, to perceive as much as possible from the news feed while running is yet bearable.