A new, powerful work by French artist Hugo Arcier recreates scenes of terror and violence within Grand Theft Auto V. With 11 Executions, Arcier stages brutal acts in which men and women of different ethnicities, social classes, and ages slaughter innocent people on the beach, on the highway, in the office, on the pier, and more. It's hard to miss the connection with recent events, both in Paris and elsewhere. In a sense, 11 Executions can be seen as a series of re-enactments or, better, replays, devoid of explicit political or ideological frames. Arcier mentions the short film Elephant (1989) by Alan Clarke as a key inspiration. This influence can be seen in the use of camera angles, ambient sound, and the grim "narrative". Additionally, Arcier's machinima presents generative elements because the artist has little control on the reaction of the computer-generated characters shot by the main character, which explains the choice of "replaying the replay". As Arcier explains:
It is for the artist a way to use the power of simulation of video game and try to clear up the motivation of these incomprehensible acts. Here is the device: in each video one execution of one or more civilian is committed, the reactions are generated by the AI of the game. The artist does not have any control on these reactions and also does not know by advance who will be killed. Each scenes (same killer, same place) is done twice in order to show the horror of coincidence and randomness.
11 Executions was presented at the show Si vis pacem, para bellum exhibition at Plateforme Paris Gallery on November the 13th, 2015.
Arcier's previous machinima, Limbus (2015), explored the glitchy world of Grand Theft Auto V, forcing the viewer to change her or his perspective on the game (no pun intended).
LINK: Hugo Arcier
Submitted by Matteo Bittanti
