SOUL JUNK is an immersive 3-channel audio / video installation that explores raw emotions, power & intent conveyed & betrayed by the human voice & facial expression. In the age of the selfie, Soul Junk places people inside a mind at work.

Confessions about family trauma are juxtaposed with observations about the cocksure attitudes of those in power. Narcissistic & patriarchal behavior is probed, exposing the political, economic & ethical landscape of our time, where decisions by power brokers in government or corporations prevail at the expense of individuals, families, & communities.

Spotlight speakers focus sound in a physically disorienting way. Sound is felt viscerally in the body, as well as heard aurally. Videos are projected onto sculptural materials at large scale. The projection exceeds the height & width of the materials, creating a fractured image. This visual & sonic structure amplifies the narrative juxtapositions expressed in the video. Opposing ideas are hurled against one another in rapid fire. Participants compose the work as they navigate the space. Akin to synaptic firing in the brain, new neural pathways are forged. Complexity & not always understanding the narrative is an intention of this work; mimicking the information overload of our times. Where the focused beam of 2 speakers cross over, one hears the narrative of 2 video projections. This complicates & confounds understanding, similar to the way our own minds chatter & process information. Each video is understood more clearly, the further away one stands from the speaker. This gives a macro & micro experience.

Soul Junk exposes the limits of personal choice as it intersects with the collective choices made by a society. For example, Voting: a population’s choice for government is up against the industrial complex of lobbying, social data mining, influence peddling, media bias, institutionalized suppression, economic repression & colonization. How do personal behavior, corporate & national interests, and various forms of terrorism drive politics? How have these forces driven us to the present state of things?

When & where are the borders between terror, abuse & negligence blurred & crossed. The artist bares her frustration in a range of emotions that fluctuate wildly from playful cynicism to whispering anguish; from a visible sense of disbelief to anger, we witness the frustration of one human trying to make sense of the world we live in & to stimulate a conversation about change. Soul Junk is a catalyst for social justice.