Everything + Nothing

Fine Artist and Founder of international creative studios, Acrylicize, James Burke exhibited his instagram-driven interactive artwork at The Smallest Gallery in Soho, Dean Street. ABOUT EVERYTHING + NOTHING An exploration into the highs and lows of our relationship with social media, this interactive artwork questions the effects of our new-found addiction to the brief euphoria that we experience on a daily basis via online gratification. Has our sense of value and worth become intrinsically linked to other people’s validations in endless machine-driven feedback loops? Everything and Nothing explores themes of joy, reflection, suspense and fragility. HOW IT WORKS This piece uses social media as a key component of the performance; a compressor sits on a plinth with an un-inflated balloon attached, within an exhibition space. An image of the piece is then posted on instagram at the start of the show. Each time it gets a ‘like’ on instagram, the compressor will add a puff of air to the balloon. The balloon becomes increasingly inflated and the viewer is able to see themselves in the shiny orange foil balloon reflection, until it receives too much air and bursts under the pressure. For the duration of the show the carcass of the balloon lies lifeless inside the case, as a reminder to all that whilst our addiction to social media may feel good, too much of it can destroy us.