DETECT DEFECT

A Holistic Optimization of Society
neon light, murano glass 

60 x 40 cm

 

MONEY MAKER, 2019 
Stadtgalerie Brixen

Collaboration with Microtec. Innovating Wood

curated by Lisa Trockner & Eva von Ingram Harpf

Südtiroler Künstlerbund

In her Work “DETECT DEFECT“ AliPaloma examines the themes of optimization and perfection. Phantasies of performance and optimization have always driven science, but now they seem to have taken a new direction. In a social context, the search for technical improvement currently aims at personal optimization.
It is no longer just a matter of perfection in a product, but of the pursuit of perfection of oneself. 
The compulsion for optimization is increasing not at least due to social media, in which everyone can present their life and body in a mediatic way. Cosmetic interventions are getting more frequent, as is the use of performance-enhancing and mood-lifting psychotropic drugs. The body is a product, whose value should increase not only referring to the labor market but also on an interpersonal level. The body unites both, the tendencies for optimization and staging. 
 

The neon sign “DETECT DEFECT“ can be interpretedin two ways: On the one hand, the luminous lettering describes the process of the scanning technologies carried out by Microtec's highly technical wood scanner: Defects in raw wood are detected and sorted out: "DEFECT DETECTED".

The tolerance for the “imperfect” disappears, deficits are supposed to be detected and eliminated: The body, the daily routine, the financial investments, the education, the nutrition, the leisure program and the emotional balance  – all are meant to be optimized.