In her new work, Petra Mrša takes on the role of an artist, producer, and facilitator who implements a game in the everyday environment of the participants in the creative process, as well as of the future audience. The project questions the potential of the game, which enables the imagination of reality.
Mrša took the trend of cosplay and LARP (live action role-playing) and allocated these formats to the Community Service Center Zagreb – Dugave that takes care of underages without appropriate parental care. At a clothing design workshop that was held in a collaboration with fashion designer Mia Ventin, characteristics of heroins (like Kathryn Janeway, Ripley, or Chun-Li) and their clothes were discussed. The teenage girls translated the clothes of fictional superheroes into their own costumes, tuned to their dressing style, and embodied it by LARP.
Games and stitches is the gallery presentation of a collaborative research process that annuls the visual spectacle of the digital and shifts the focus to a slowed-down, physical experience. A chatbot, video game, and costumes become the main tools of emancipation of participants who take control of their own experience of the gamified everyday life. By abandoning the anticipated roles, becoming aware of physical sensations, and observing the environment beyond the boundaries of the screen, collective knowledge is created, one that enables a creative and autonomous consumption of digital culture.
Curated by Lovro Japundžić and Maja Pavlinić for Gallery GMK Zagreb.
Photo credits: Ana Straže
