Human to Robot Army
Mattress Factory Museum, 2008
Collaboration with John Pena
Human to Robot Army was launched at a time when cellphones had started to be ubiquitous appendages. Throughout the three-month run of the project, individual and group hypnosis sessions, lead by professional hypnotist John Weir, were held weekly at the Mattress Factory. Through a series of hypnotic exercises Weir planted the suggestion that the participants were to think or act like a "robot" upon hearing a given trigger word. Each participant supplied their phone number and signed a waiver agreeing that they would receive a call randomly each day during the three months of the project. Upon answering the phone they were given their trigger word which would induce them to think or act like a "robot" for a short period of time. All of the subjects, wherever they were, were activated simultaneously at a random time each day. Recruiting posters (each one showing a different possible human/robot) were placed throughout the city to solicit participation and make the public aware of the possibility of activated subjects (which could be anyone they might seeing talking on their cell phone).
Poster Design Brett Yasko