SM1701 Research Blog Post 5 : Wafaa Bilal OR Hito Steyerl

Topic: Wafaa Bilal’s Domestic Tension

Student Name : CHIN Ho

Student No : 59380938

(image sources: https://anthology.rhizome.org/domestic-tension)

Wafaa Bilal is an Iraqi-American artist who uses art to address political, cultural, and technological issues. His works include Virtual Jihadi and The 3rd I.

From this week, the research blog post, I focused on one of his artworks, "Domestic Tension," which is a networked performance. Wafaa Bilal will broadcast live to the internet 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and invite viewers to watch and chat with him at all hours. The viewers will also be given the option to choose to shoot Wafaa Bilal with a robotically controlled paintball gun. Moreover, this artwork highlights the violence and racism in US culture after the September 11 attacks to raise awareness about the Iraqis who have been affected. Also, he created this artwork to tell us his experiences under Saddam Hussein ‘s regime, the Gulf War attacks, and the Sunni-Shia brutalities. Furthermore, this artwork was created through digital technology engaged with the mediation of violence to make gamification. With the click of a mouse, the viewers could become soldiers and fire a paintball gun harm to Wafaa Bilal.

To sum up, Domestic Tension brings the war reality to life, showing how technology gamifies violence. By inviting online users to use a paintball gun to shoot him, to make his house turn into a war zone. This artwork also told us global conversations, revealing both hate and hope. Through his art, Wafaa Bilal was telling us to confront war, technology, and cultural divides, pushing for understanding and peace.