Galleria Huuto, Helsinki, Finland / 2019
The happening/installation What Happens When Nothing Happens is part of my exploration of the “infraordinary,” a concept introduced by Georges Perec that refers to quotidian experiences and questions the visibility of such events in everyday life.
In this work, I engage with the thoughts, ideas, and questions surrounding what happens when nothing happens.
During the exhibition (Monday, 14 October – Thursday, 31 October 2019), I focused on the relationship between the idea of the art event and the infraordinary. I placed a desk, books, a typewriter, and other materials that I used throughout my stay in the gallery space.
Visitors came, observed, and asked questions (mostly, “Where is the toilet?” since they assumed I was an information desk), while I observed what unfolded between the opening and closing of the exhibition.
Photo by Laureline Tilkin
And so, I sat and encountered the everyday within the gallery. Throughout my time working there, I kept a daily journal (below), noting what I observed, experienced, and thought. This became both an account of those days and a reflection on what happens when nothing happens:
andreacoyotziborja.com 