miguel soares

Papel de Parede
curated by João Pinharanda

November, 1997
Centro de Arte de S. João da Madeira
S. João da Madeira, Portugal

exhibited works: Your Mission is a Failure video/installation

Mediações – Inter@ctividades
Conferência Internacional sobre Tecnologias e Mediação – ICTM’97
curated by Isabel Carlos and Maria Teresa Cruz

March 28 > April 20, 1997
Palácio Galveias
Lisbon, Portugal

exhibited works: Your Mission is a Failure (ICTM97 edit)

Miguel Soares 1996
solo exhibition

November 08 > 28, 1996
Galeria Monumental
Lisbon, Portugal

(above, image from the invitation – detail)

exhibited works:

• Psi 03
• untitled  (minimoon)
• 6 images, Duratrans on lightboxes, 50×70 cm each
• untitled (Elvis)
• Your mission is a Failure
• untitled (Sterilair)
• Gingko (with João Vaz Ribeiro)
• Rex (by Alexandre Estrela)

.

this work was presented in two versions:
>Your Mission is a Failure, 1996, video projection, stereo sound, 56 min.
>Your Mission is a Failure (ICTM97 edit), 1997, video projection, light box, psychadelic sensor, stereo sound, 25 min.

Your Mission is a Failure consists of a series of virtual performances – recorded on video – taking place inside the worlds of early 3d computer games for pc.
The performances consist of continuously dying (thus the title, taken from the computer game Command & Conquer message when the game is over), or, using hacking tricks, becoming imortal,
exploring and passing the virtual boundaries of the game architectural set, or even making music during the gameplay.
All the performances were transfered live to video using a Creative TV Coder, under Windows 95.
Games used include: MechWarrior 2, Dark Forces, Doom, Descent 2, Duke Nukem 3d.

In 1997, I made a shorter version of the video, and used a psychadelic lightbox from my 1996 solo show.
This box was placed in the middle of the projection area and would react to the video and ambient sound through light patterns.

.

Your mission is a failure: Dark Forces

1. attacking a sculpture. 02′08”
2. invisible floor in the vacuum of space. 01′44”
3. jamming the door. 03′07”
4. invulnerable, jumping with the aid of land mines. 03′24”

.

Your mission is a failure: Duke Nukem 3D

1. playing pool with guns. 01′16”
2. invulnerable, creating a grid of laser beams inside a theater with laser detection bombs. 04′28”
3. using the shrinking gun on a dancer. 01′52”
4. invulnerable, underwater. floating laser detection bombs. 02′27”

.

Your mission is a failure: MechWarrior II

part 1
1. ejecting, aborting mission. 02′57”
2. explosions in the dark, and self-destructing an_invulnerable mech. 01′37”
3. leaving the defined mission zone. 04′01”

.

Your mission is a failure: MechWarrior II

part 2
1. invulnerable, taking hits. 01′42”
2. looking right and left to the rhythm of the steps. 02′44”
3. leaving the defined mission zone II. 03′43”