Vika Kirchenbauer

At the very beginning of the work, the viewer is invited to delve into a »world of experience«, an immersive, safe space which promises to deliver a sense of belonging. In accordance with the theory of the »experience economy«, the figures in Vika Kirchenbauer’s work advertise themselves to the viewer, claiming to be catalysts for living out desires and fantasies that lie beyond conventional social norms. Appearing in varying combinations, the five performers seem to invite the viewer to take part in a queer subculture while remaining in the institutional setting of an exhibition. Yet instead of allowing the viewer to consume the images at a safe distance, they find themselves forced to deal with the presence of the unknown bodies. The performers are projected in 3D, and so the viewer finds themselves in (virtual) spatial proximity to them. The performers train their gazes on the viewers, addressing them directly: behind their tolerant facade, the viewers are in fact obstinate bores.

Subjected to this inverted gaze, the viewers are challenged to consider their internalized consensus concerning gender critical behaviors. Nonetheless, it remains unclear whether the exhibition of marginal figures in an art context is an inclusive gesture, or whether it is simply a form of exoticization that serves to cement existing hierarchies. By raising this question alongside that of the presentation and reception of queer body images, YOU ARE BORING! also thematizes the economization of subcultural experiences through art.