Conversatorio
2023
Installation of electronic objects
Conversatorio is a series of feminist electronic and digital artworks that combine sound, light and data to address gender-based violence. The series includes 8 electronic DIY boards, whose audiovisual characteristics are determined by the number 78: in 2023, up until September 15th, 78 women were assassinated in Spain for misogynistic and sexist motives.
Each board of Conversatorio is coded so that it visually or sonically represents this number, referring to these hate crimes, which in the Spanish language are called 'feminicidios'. Simultaneously, the number 78 is visualized in a subtle and almost invisible way, just like gender violence operates and persists in our societies.
Upon entering the Conversatorio installation, visitors find themselves encircled by seemingly unpredictable soundscapes that are in fact predetermined by data representing gender violence in its worst consequences.
The central piece shows scattered LED matrices displaying text reflecting on the status of gender equality, juxtaposed with lines of code that control the matrices.
The distribution and randomized movement of this text make it impossible to read, pointing to the gap between the discourse on gender equality and the current state of gender-based violence. This raises questions about whether the mechanisms for achieving gender equality need to be updated in order to function better.
Conversatorio is conceptualized as an open hardware feminist art project, designed and assembled in such a manner that it uncovers what is usually hidden. The works are open-source and transparent, and all components are visible so that visitors can see what these technologies consist of. Besides calling for openness and transparency, Conversatorio invites audiences to reclaim technology by providing instructions for building their own DIY devices.
See the project on GitHub:
https://github.com/silviabinda/conversatorio
Artwork specs:
8 pieces of approximately 20cm x 20cm x 5cm each.
1 piece of approximately 195cm x 65cm x 5cm.
Above: Views and details of Conversatorio, photos by Dario Ochoa and Silvia Binda.