An exhibition of 17 artists commenting on “the constructed nature of identity in the digital age” Fornieles work exemplified this for me.

A large installation inviting the viewer to sit in the chair, to use the keyboard, but the plinth excludes. On the screen the viewer is observing  a story developed by 34 volunteers over 3 months using social media as a theatrical space. The 3d printed sculpture on the desk illustrates an incident as the “college” narrative became darker, it looked like a plasticine animation in progress, the album on the other side a “Frat book” of the characters.

 Fornieles has expanded the installation to use the high ceilinged space at Zabludowicz, creating a temple like monolith to the tech. The black cabling and electrical connections heap up behind the desk. The solitary performance of objects is enhanced by the centering of the chair in the composition, it could have been less and then more Brechtian. Social media encourages ‘acting out’ and the instant emotional response, Fornieles has been the first to actually direct this, creating a live three month performance which has developed into a number of works, including an on-line book. The pace of the film is riveting viewing, but I am not sure how much the installation adds to it. Fornieles work and this installation in particular is challenging my own ideas for combining and juxtaposing objects and film about intimacy and thoughts about how to exhibit in group shows