whatiamlookingfor-2

Antonio Cortez & Rosa María Alfaro, But I Still Haven’t Found What I Am Looking For, 2011,

Two channel video on two 8” screens mounted on trash cans

6:00 min., 42” H x 46 1/2” L x 23 1/4” W

BUT I STILL HAVEN’T FOUND WHAT I AM LOOKING FOR

KEEPING AN EYE ON SURVEILLANCE | PAI

SAN FRANCISCO, CA | SEP. 10 - OCT. 22, 2011

INSTALLATION ART

© all rights reserved | 2011

THE ORIGINAL SONG AS INSPIRATION

I have climbed highest mountain

I have run through the fields

Only to be with you

Only to be with you

I have run

I have crawled

I have scaled these city walls

These city walls

Only to be with you

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for

...You broke the bonds and you

Loosed the chains

Carried the cross

Of my shame

Of my shame

You know I believed it...

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for

But I still haven't found what I'm looking for

U2

SELECTED CONCEPTS

LOVE IS IN THE AIR...

...WHAT I AM LOOKING FOR

SELECTED CONCEPTS

LOVE IS IN THE AIR...

...WHAT I AM LOOKING FOR

This Video of the iconic song by U2 is not part of the installation but the words and sound seem to resonate with our post 9/11 world in unintended mysterious ways. In the lyrics (and in this rendition with a New York Chorus) I have found a hymn to our continuous search for meanings in our collective response to 9/11 attacks. Naming the piece after this song is intended for the audience to add their own soundtrack to the piece from memory.

ART REVIEW

...We cannot begin to unravel the social and personal complexities of surveillance and voyeurism, the issue is fraught with polarities and ambivalence on numerous levels. But, has fear paved the way for the proliferation of powerful surveillance tools and compromised the principles of the U.S. Constitution to protect our privacy? The Performance Art Institute, in San Francisco, takes on these issues with “Keeping an Eye on Surveillance,” an in-depth look at surveillance in the post-9/11 world. For this exhibition, curator Hanna Regev has pulled together over thirty artists, working in a range of media including painting, photography and video, as well as multi-media installations. The artworks examine uses, motives, and consequences of surveillance, asking questions such as when and how much is acceptable, and under what circumstance? Some of the works explore the allure of new technologies such as Earth observation satellites, Google Earth, Webcams, and instant posting of cell phone photos. Other works consider the desire to divulge secrets or expose personal details using social media sites, where we seem to so willingly “share” everything about ourselves, where Big Brother has not only become a reality but has reeled us in....
Noting the often futile pursuit of personal information, Antonio Cortez and Rosa Maria Alfaro, created “But I Still Haven’t Found What I Am Looking For”, which consists of two video monitors mounted on two silver cylinder trash cans full of trash. One video shows changing images of trash in the cans, the other one streams texts of viewer comments that address the issue of searching our trash for incriminating evidence.
...In the words of Hanna Regev, “the exhibition seeks to underscore the need to balance our longing for security with our dedication to a free and open society.” Walking through the darkened gallery, which enhances the viewing of light-based media, you begin to wonder who may be watching you.
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