TateShots: Tony Oursler's Influence Machine

Conceived as a kind of ‘psycho-landscape’, the work consists of monologues performed by ethereal figures which are projected onto trees, walls and clouds of smoke. Invoking the spirit of the phantasmagorias of the late eighteenth century, it traces the growth of telecommunication, from the telegraph to the radio, the television and the internet, acting as an alternative history of disembodied communication Oursler recently collaborated with David Bowie to direct the video for Bowie’s single ‘Where Are We Now?’, which featured his characteristic puppet’s head projections.

‘The Influence Machine’, presented in collaboration with Artangel, can be seen outside Tate Modern on 15–16 and 18–19 February 2013, from 18.00–22.00.