«Behavioral Virus – Viral Behavior» 02.11. – 06.11.2015

Band societies consist of 30 to 100 individuals. They have loose organization and egalitarian structures. All members know each other. Decisions are made on a consensus base. Contemporary civilizations are structured and stratified in complex social hierarchies. On a daily basis urbanites consciously and unconsciously interact and communicate with innumerous strangers. Common habits, new ways of expression and vogues arise and spread by medial representation and the basic social function of imitation. The rapidity and simultaneousness of dissemination go beyond traceability and may repeal the laws of causal and spatial relationships.

In a nonstop performance of more than 100 hours a group of approx. 35 people gather in order to establish a contemporary band society taking care of basic needs such as shelter, alimentation and sanitation. Out of this altered social situation the members roam public Basel attending to study and analyze social action and interpersonal behavior. As a contribution to peaceful coexistence this project is considered as a living laboratory intending to design, to cultivate and release new strains of behavioral patterns.

The workshop will be led by Philipp Furtenbach. He is cofounder and artistic director of «AO&» (Philipp Furtenbach, Philipp Riccabona and Thomas Wisser). The group works in fields such as visual arts, performance, architecture, urban- and regional development. «AO&»’s settings, spatial sequences and dramaturgies create extraordinary conditions for abidance, communication and production.