PUFF OUT: A Bitter Medicine to Museums Under Lockdown by :mentalKLINIK

PUFF OUT is a provocative installation by the artist duo :mentalKLINIK, curated by Carl De Smet for the Museum of Contemporary Art in Belgrade, marking its debut as the first host. In a world where museums and cultural spaces have faced closures due to the pandemic, this project serves as a critical response to the isolation and the challenges these institutions have faced.

The Bitter Pill of Digital Transition

With a shift to more online engagement, :mentalKLINIK offers PUFF OUT as a "bitter pill" for the emptiness that museums have experienced during lockdowns. The installation, initially designed to occupy physical museum space, also extends its presence to digital platforms, challenging traditional exhibition formats and forcing us to rethink the museum experience in a digital age.

The Hoovers and the Glitter: A Surreal Performance

At the heart of the installation are six robot hoovers, programmed to detect and chase dust in a room blanketed with glitter particles. The hoovers, working autonomously, create abstract drawings and spread glitter throughout the space, generating an after-party atmosphere. Their continuous, tireless movement mimics the chaos of a post-event space, as they obsessively chase the sparkling remnants left behind. This visual spectacle is streamed live on the museum's website, allowing viewers to watch the robots in real-time as they twirl and create an evolving scene of glitter-fueled absurdity.

Reinventing Viewership and Museum Spaces

The ongoing live broadcast of the hoovers invites the audience into a new form of exhibition-making, where the museum is no longer a static, human-centered space but rather an evolving, virtual performance. This migration to the web speaks to a fractured reality, one that is now consumed through screens, catering to our collective voyeuristic tendencies. The installation raises questions about the nature of presence, perception, and the role of museums in a post-lockdown world.

A Conceptual Black Swan

PUFF OUT also evokes the imagery of a "black swan" floating in the art world, an unexpected, disruptive event that questions our understanding of the art institution and its future. The installation asks viewers: Are you ready to take the bitter medicine by :mentalKLINIK, which challenges not only the physicality of the museum but also its digital transformation?

Through this thought-provoking work, :mentalKLINIK offers a critical commentary on how the museum experience is evolving in the digital era, making PUFF OUT an essential reflection on the future of art in a world forever changed by the pandemic.