at Museum für Kommunikation Berlin

16 March 2016 – 26 June 2016

A computer game punishing mistakes with real pain; a box creating the world’s smallest social network; balls moving as if by magic, steered by the human voice. Volker Morawe and Tilman Reiff’s multi-sensory installations take a playful and humorous approach to offer a very different perspective on the mechanisms of media interaction.

In no pain no game, their first worldwide solo exhibition, the art duo known as //////////fur//// is presenting ten selected works. The exhibition was commissioned by the Goethe-Institut as part of the Europe-wide project SPIELTRIEB!. //////////fur//// makes art interactive – creating an experience beyond the comfort zone.

Their PainStation, winner of the International Media Art Award, is regarded as both a milestone and a taboo breaker. Based on the iconic video game Pong (1972), PainStation is the first computer game which does not merely visually represent pain, but is actually painful.

On around 500 square metres of space, the exhibition comprises nine other interactive installations, less dramatic perhaps, but no less impressive. Snake Pit, for instance, gives the classic computer game Hyper-Wurm (1979) a run for its money. The action originally seen on a mini-screen is transformed into a competitive and sweat-inducing dash for two players. In contrast, Amazing, a voice-controlled maze game, is all about hitting the right note together at the right time. And last but not least, facebox puts real-world proximity in place of digital disembodiment in social networks. This eye-to-eye encounter creates an unusual sense of intimacy – and could even end in a genuine friendship.

Museum for Communication Berlin
Leipziger Strasse 16
10117 Berlin-Mitte Germany