BUILDING BORDER DOORS MADE OF ART

fig. 3.0 Turnstyle on exhibit at Media Noche Gallery, NYC

While my art process was stalled for the piece about the women of Juarez, I focused my energies on a new art piece. I conceived the idea for an interactive border door titled, Turnstyle. It was made with electrical sensors, an analog to digital Teleo™ converter, a USB cable, an Apple G4 computer to run the Max MSP/Jitter software, two projectors, PVC pipes, plastic, wood, screws, and chicken wire.

fig. 3.1 Turnstyle, PVC pipe raw material (left)

fig. 3.2 Turnstyle, unpainted (right)

There were three versions of the Turnstyle. What I mean is, I installed it three different times, in three different locations, and in each space the Turnstyle created a different experience for the users. The first time I installed the Turnstyle was in the basement floor of the Art Department's West Hall building. The seemingly ancient building provided an aura of spookiness beyond belief. I placed the Turnstyle between two brick walls between the men's restroom and the main entrance to the graduate space where other artists were displaying their installations. The buzz over the Turnstyle was significant. Everyone was curious if I could get it to work.

fig. 3.3 Turnstyle interactive design and schemata

I commissioned my collaborator Jonathan Lee Marcus to create the Max MSP/Jitter patch that interfaced with the Teleo™ and the computer. We worked on the patch together. I gave him the instructions on how I wanted the switches to work with the Teleo™ and he conceived of the entire design of the patch. The algorithm worked and that was all that mattered in the end. What Marcus did was enable the sensors to switch video depending on the direction the users would physically rotate the Turnstyle. What this means is that if no user was there to push the Turnstyle the video would not play. Whatever image the video stopped on is what stayed frozen on the projection screen. There are obviously two directions the user could turn the turnstile. For each direction, I assigned a video clip. Each video clip represented a different country on the U.S./Mexico Border; therefore, one direction represented a "Mexican Video" and the other direction played the "U.S. Video."

fig. 3.3 Turnstyle, Mexican Video, digital still from video (left)

fig. 3.4 Turnstyle, U.S. Video, digital still from video (right)

I performed in each video a different character. In the Mexican Video, I played María, pronounced in Spanish as (Ma-ree-ya). María is a Mexican citizen who works at the Turnstyle's Mexican Port of Entry. She acts as the human boundary between people physically in the U.S. who cross the pedestrian border into Mexico. She gladly waves people into Mexico trying to get the pedestrians to walk through the Turnstyle faster. María is sometimes bored with getting people to walk through the border fast enough and her character often times yawns.

fig. 3.5 Turnstyle, Mexican Video, "María bosteza," digital still from video

The scale of the video demands power over the viewer and makes people feel as though María is in charge of their fate. Indeed when crossing a real Mexican Port of entry the initial feeling can be, "Wow, there is someone physically at the border? I may get interrogated or harassed." The truth is many of the border agents just wave you in and try to prevent you from rubbernecking too long. This can give a border crosser a sense of entitlement over the land they are about to enter. The freedom to enter often times is so relaxed that it encourages tourism. My point about the Mexican border is that it is almost just an excuse of a border. I do know that sometimes the real customs agents search for large sums of money, expensive electronics, and specific things they can hold as contraband. I have heard of family members having to leave expensive equipment with Mexican customs agents because supposedly they wanted you to pay importation taxes. This is very rare and most people just cross into Mexico with no major incidents.

fig. 3.6 Turnstyle, Mexican Video, "María del Contrabando," digital still from video

María represents those easygoing bored Mexican customs agents. Most agents do not want to sit in the hot California sun and wave people into the country all day. This can get very boring and repetitive. In the video María repeats the word, "Pase" meaning "Pass," as in you can pass through this border. She waves people in as she exclaims, "Andale-Andale, Pase, Pase, siga caminando." Translated, María is saying, "Pass, Pass, keep walking." Because the character María is Mexican, she only speaks Spanish to the visitors watching her projection determined by the person turning the Turnstyle.

fig. 3.7, Turnstyle, Mexican Video, "María y la Farandula," digital still from video

The transcript of the Mexican Video is as follows:

María (Mexican Customs Agent):

(Visual: María waving people into Mexico over and over)

Andale-Andale

(Visual: waving Translation: keep walking, keep walking)

Pase, Pase, Siga Caminando

(Waving & waving; Translation: Pass, Pass, Please continue to Walk)

Pase

(Translation: Pass)

(María yawns as she waves people with her hand)

Pase

(Starts using both hands to wave people into the border)

Pase, Pase

(in a more annoyed tone Translation: Pass, Pass)

(María waves and says Pase another 16 times before she actually asks someone to stop)

¿Que Trae Aqui?

(Translation: "What do you have here?" María asks as she opens a bag)

Pistolas, Dinero

(Translation: "Guns? Money?")

Tiene que declarar su dinero

("You have to declare what money you have!" She preaches.)

Y Pagar una multa

("and pay a fine or penalty," she ads.)

¿Hmm, A donde va?

("Hmm, Where are you going?" she asks.)

Por cuanto tiempo?

("for how long?")

Hmm, No Tiene Dinero.

(María sounds disappointed for not finding money.)

Bueno Pase!

("Fine, You can Pass." waves the person into Mexico after all.)

Gracias, Siga Pasando, Pase el que sigue, pase

(she thanked the person for allowing their inspection, then continues with asking people to continue passing through the border door over and over)

¿Y usted que trae?

(María inspects another bag.)

Dinero, Pistolas, Pase

(again she checks for guns & money but allows them to pass.)

Pase, Pase, Pase, Pase

(Maía resumes her waving and asks people to pass through the border)

Chocolates?

(She opens a box of Hawaiian chocolates only to find medicine bottles)

Medicina! No se permite drogas, tiene que tener un permiso de un doctor.

(Translation: Medicine? Drugs are not allowed; you need a doctor's permit.)

(María clumsily opens the box of chocolates and all the drugs fall out, she tells the crossers)

No Pasa, Vaya a revision y pague una multa.

("You can't pass," she states in a very defeated tone of voice, points them towards secondary inspection and asks pedestrian to pay a fine)

El que sigue, Pase, Pase, Pase la revision, Pase, Pase, Pase,

Pase.

(María just continues to ask people to pass through the checkpoint over and over)

- - End of Transcript - -

This transcript is of the 3-minute video loop of the Mexican Video, however, when I install the video with the Turnstyle, users cannot really tell where the video begins or ends. Depending on where the last user left the video that is where the next user will begin their experience. The video just plays and never really gets reset to start from the top it just continues looping until the Turnstyle is turned off. The intent of having the video loop instead of becoming reset is to give the user the experience of a never ending feeling that people just keep crossing through the Mexican border all day long.

In the background of each video are stereotypical generic images of Mexico from my home movies that I captured on mini-dv. María's background constantly changes, indicating she is also floating through an imaginary time and place in Mexico.

fig. 3.8 Turnstyle, Mexico Video, "Los Payasos de Cancun," digital still from video

From Mexico, I took video of street performing clowns making a hustle next to a tourist bus. I recorded them and added them to the background of the Mexican María customs agent character using the chroma key effect.

fig. 3.9, Turnstyle, Mexican Video, "El Saguaro Cactus," digital still from video

As another one of the backgrounds, I inserted video from a road trip to Cabo San Lucas where I recorded images of the native cactus plants. In Mexican slang the word nopal is used as a verb to describe the equivalent of a "backwards indigenous person." To me it was very important to include an image of a "nopal" or a cactus in my video not because I want to offend Mexico and call it backwards; Instead, I included it as a symbol of racism in Mexico. I use the image of the cactus because it is a Mexican stereotype. The cactus is a very loaded word for many Mexican people. The cactus can symbolize the connection between Mexicans and their Mesoamerican heritage.

fig. 3.10 Turnstyle, U.S. Video, "Dead Soldiers of Iraq," still from video

In the U.S. Video, I played a U.S. Border agent named Maria, pronounced in English as (Mah-ree-ah). The U.S. Video included also the same idea for the chroma key background as the Mexican Video. Stereotypical images of the U.S. are on the background. I would add, even generic images are in the back. The first time I ever stepped foot in Washington D.C. was to attend an anti-war protest with Cindy Sheehan on September 24, 2005. At the demonstration there were fake coffins draped with U.S. flags. The protest had ended so all of them were just lying on the grass where the protesters rested. I took the opportunity to save those images for the background of this art piece.

fig. 3.11 Turnstyle, U.S. Video, "Accepting Papers," digital still from video

Not many people know that most U.S. Border agents are of Mexican descent. Many U.S. Citizens have the impression that mostly Anglos patrol the U.S. side of the border. The reality is that the majority of Border Agents could be Latino. There are plenty of Anglos, Asians, and all sorts of people; however, the Border Patrol is actually a very diverse group of people. Most I would say are people of color. The reason for that is that mostly brown people live at the Borders. It was important to represent both the Mexican customs agent and the U.S. Border agent in these videos as brown for that reason.

fig. 3.12 Turnstyle, U.S. Video, "Interrogation Questions," digital still from video

The following is the transcript of the video:

MARIA (U.S. Border Agent):

Where were you born?

(inspects papers)

And where are you going?

(inspects papers)

Ok, do you have papers for the children?

(Spanish) ¿Es tú mama?

(English Translation: Is she your mother?)

(waves people in and stops them placing hand up)

Are you an American Citizen?

Where were you born?

(inspects papers)

All right, go ahead

(waves the viewer into the installation)

(border hack of Border Patrol Arresting a small indigenous looking man)

Thank you

(offers thanks for papers)

You are a student?

That's your I-20?

(Boryana answers yes)

Where do you go to school?

(Borderhack, SUV full of undocumented people and a man being patted down by U.S. Border Agent.)

Where were you born?

Ok, everything is all set.

(waves them in)

(stops crosses with hand raised)

You are an American Citizen?

This your California ID?

And can I see papers for the children?

(Spanish) ¿Son tus papas?
(English Translation: Are they your parents?)

(Spanish) Quien es tu mama?

(English Translation: Who is your mother?)

(Spanish) y vas a la escuela?

(English Translation: Do you go to school?)

(Spanish) en donde?

(English Translation: Where?)

ok...

(Maria lets them into the U.S.)

(Boryana replies Thank you)

(Stops them with hand)

(Borderhack, Smithsonian photo of brasero's getting DDT'd in the head and face as an antiquated form of inspection)

Eres Mexicana?

(Translation: Are you Mexican?)

(Spanish) Y los niños son Ciudadanos Americanos?

(English Translation: And the children, are they American Citizens?)

(Spanish) Ok bueno pasa

(English Translation: Ok, Fine pass through)

Where are you from?

Where are you going?

Ok go ahead.

(Spanish) A donde va?

(English Translation: Where are you going?)

Where were you born?

Are you an American citizen now?

(Boryana answers yes)

(Borderhack of another person getting sprayed with DDT)

Where were you born?

Where are you going?

And what was the purpose of your visit to Mexico?

(Borderhack: "MinutOmen your minute's up, now go home.")

Where are you from?

And where are you going?

Where are you from?

You're an American citizen now?

What was the purpose of your visit to Mexico?

And do you have anything to declare?

(Borderhack: picture of immigrants looking for work down a street)

Ok? How many people we got here? Lets see? (Inspecting papers)

All right are these your parents?

Are you going to school right now?

What grade are you in?

Are you an American citizen?

And you you're an American citizen?

Go ahead

Where are you from?

What was the purpose of your visit to Mexico?

What did you buy?

All right go ahead.

- - End of Transcript - -

fig. 3.13 Turnstyle, U.S. Video, "Stop on a Freeway," digital still from video

The U.S. Video is quite complex in that it brings up many issues that happen at the border. First, you have me, performing the Mexican-American woman working as a U.S. Border Agent. Then I chose to have Maria and María wear white gloves to exaggerate the power of the hand waving motion that visually and helps grant crossers access to both walking directions. I find that the hand waving is perhaps one of the most significant things going on in both videos. In addition, I had another artist, originally from Bulgaria, named Boryana Rossa that helped me record the U.S. Video. For some reason, I felt that if I had a real human being with me in the studio I could actually be more believable on camera. In the end, I allowed some bloopers to stay within the video.

fig. 3.14 Turnstyle, U.S. Video, Artist out of character (blue screen)

At times, I could not help but laugh at my own performance and laughed mostly off camera with Rossa at my own ability to act like a border agent. If someone carefully watches the U.S. Video the viewer might notice some smiling before the video jump cuts to another take. A blooper that I did not expect to be in the video is Rossa, responding to my questions. I advised her not to respond to my questions during the taping, however, Rossa expressed discomfort with my tone of voice even though I was just performing Maria the U.S. Border Agent. Rossa is an international graduate student on a fellowship from Bulgaria. Rossa stated that she could not help but to respond verbally with the answers to my questions. She complimented me on my performance stating that I was often frightening performing the Border Agent. I ended up liking the reason why she could not help but to respond and allowed that blooper to become part of the work.

fig 3.15 Turnstyle, U.S. Video, "Hunters Water," digital still from video

Non-profit organizations place along the U.S. side of the border some water stations where people who are crossing the desert can drink water in case of dehydration. The Border Angels and the brother of an anti-immigrant congressman named Hunter are in charge of placing these containers. (California Connected) These organizations have created non-profit volunteer groups to post a blue flag around several gallons of water as an oasis for undocumented border crossers to use in case of an emergency.

fig. 3.16 Turnstyle, U.S. Video, "MinutOmen Go Home," digital still from video

This image is displayed in the U.S. Video along with creepy radio frequency sounds and some color bars. I call it a border hack. Basically it is an appropriated image that I used to supposedly infiltrate the meaning of my own creation. It is an anti-minutemen graphic that was made in order to protest the existence of a vigilante group. The anti-immigrant group was featured all over the mainstream news. They are this new vigilante group who call themselves, the Minuteman Project led by Jim Gilchrest in Arizona in 2005. This group racially profiles and targets people entering the U.S./Mexico Border and the vigilantes do their best to stop innocent people from entering the U.S. undocumented. The Minutemen adopted a name popular in the time of the confederates and the U.S. Civil War. These are, in my opinion, neo-confederates who think that the only people who have a right to immigrate into the U.S. are people with blue eyes and blond hair. The people the vigilante groups stop at the border target the weak and helpless. At one point an Army reservist was caught "holding undocumented immigrants at gunpoint" in the desert (AP). He claimed no affiliation to the minute men when the police arrested him but he was detained the same day the minutemen were suggesting others help their movement.

fig. 3.17 Turnstyle base fig 3.18 Turnstyle before paint and wobbled

The first version of the Turnstyle was much more prone to fall on top of someone if left standing alone. I commissioned Rafael Antonio Irizarry, to help with all of the design and construction of the Turnstyle. He was an irreplaceable worker. Irizarry thought that a wheel bearing could function as the base and so I welded it to another piece of metal so that it would hold up the Turnstyle. The actual construction of the physical structure took about four days but many weeks of planning the design. I had to learn how to weld and turn metal on a lathe to make the initial base for the Turnstyle. Later I decided to go with constructing the actual housing for the Turnstyle. I knew the revolving door would always be unsteady until we resolved the bad base issue.

fig. 3.19 Turnstyle Construction and mounting of wood housing

The next semester I purchased wood, an amazing amount of screws and showed the piece unfinished once again at the MFA show. I had some crazy idea that bringing small electronic LCD screens would enhance the experience, and it did not. All of the electronics and cables made the Turnstyle look cluttered and shaky. Because of the size of the LCD's, the imposing presence of the border agent was also gone.

fig 3.20 Turnstyle LCD electronics used for experimentation

For the installation at the new media art gallery in New York City, everything had to be as clean and free from clutter as possible. I scrapped the idea of mounting LCD screens on the wooden housing of the Turnstyle.

fig. 3.21 Turnstyle installation Medianoche Gallery

I decorated the black wooden housing with chicken wire on two sides of the housing to block traffic on two sides of the Turnstyle. I left the top of the chicken wire exposing the pointed edges towards the ceiling. Alternating were the edges of the wire from one direction to the other. The intention was to make it look as close to barbed wire as possible. I think huge barbed wire on top of the installation might be a distraction and the purpose is to get visitors to interact with the door.

fig. 3.22 Turnstyle sensors and plastic "clickers"

We added the plastic clickers that activated the sensors that told the software what direction the door was turning. I used an automatic sander to sand all the PVC pipes that would compose the rotary and cleaned off the dust. I sprayed the Turnstyle painted it, a silver grey to make it look like metal. Visitors mentioned that from a distance that it really looked like a real metal Turnstyle.

Any metropolitan train station in the world can be customized to work with the Turnstyle patch and video. This would create a virtual U.S./Mexico border art piece out of any revolving door. The piece could work on any turnstile door of a museum, gallery or walkway.

Turnstyle is definitely a piece that can travel around the world with very little technical requirements. The patch can be emailed to anyone in the world who already has the equipment and the videos can be downloaded upon request. Ideally, I would place the Turnstyle between four large projection screens. The installation's intention is to create as much an immersive experience as possible. The more "Marías" that surround the person walking through the Turnstyle the better.