plan-c

A vibrating line on a white background, which scans across the computer-generated plane. The soundtrack also suggests disquiet. Stretching, distorting, tearing – breakage. What had begun as an abstraction is transformed into animation.
An image is created. We see a production line and working hands in repetitive motion which belong to the four protagonists and makers of this video, Harald Holba, Elke Mayr, Manuel Maxl and Ines Weber – the artist collective plan-c. The production line is presented as a possible venue for ritualized work processes. Unrecognizable objects or products are placed in green boxes which indicate that the production process is intact. The same movements are performed again and again. The repetitious, almost tormenting soundtrack, a loop, reinforces the monotony of the action. The video progresses toward a climax which is formally set off by two components: The camera angles gradually concentrate on the scenery, and the speed increases steadily. The image wobbles, begins to fray; its movements accelerate, and it withdraws again and again to the vibrating line, never coming to rest. Expansion and collapse alternate. The human figures follow its example. Standstill signifies the end. And suddenly the climax comes. Enough is enough. The objects which have just been produced are thrown to the floor. Work stops. The colour green no longer defines the territory, it has been replaced by red, which in this context signifies STOP. (Dietmar Schwärzler)