LevManovichONTOTALITARIANINTERACTIVITY(notesfromtheenemyofthe people) In"Art,Power,andCommunication"(RHIZOMEDIGEST:October11,1996. http://www.rhizome.com) AlexeiShulginwrites:"Lookingatverypopularmediaartformsuchas"interactive installation"Ialwayswonderhowpeople(viewers)areexitedaboutthisnewwayof manipulationonthem.Itseemsthatmanipulationistheonlyformofcommunication theyknowandcanappreciate.Theyarehappilyfollowingveryfewoptionsgivento thembyartists:pressleftorrightbutton,jumporsit.Theirmanipulatorsartistsfeel thatandareusingseducesofnewesttechnologies(futurenow!)toinvolvepeoplein theirpseudointeractivegamesobviouslybasedonbanalwillforpower.Butwhatnice wordsyoucanheararoundit:interaction,interfaceforselfexpression,artificial intelligence,communicationeven.So,emergenceofmediaartischaracterisedby transitionfromrepresentationtomanipulation.

n." AlexeiShulginisrightin analyzingthephenomenonofinteractiveartandmediaasashiftfromrepresentation tomanipulation.Yes,interactivecomputerinstallationsindeedrepresentanadvanced formofaudiencemanipulation,wherethesubjectisputwithinastructureverysimilar toanexperimentalsetupofapsychologicallaboratoryorahightechtorturechamber ofCIAorKGB,thekindwesawfrequentlyinspyfilmsoftheColdWarera.Yet preciselybecauseIwhowasinMoscowandgrewupthereduringBreznev'serais sohappytoagreewithShulgin'sconclusionsIrecognizethelimitationsofthis analysis,orrather,itsculturalspecificity.Itisonlyapostcommunistsubjectwhocan seeinteractiveartandmediaintheseterms.(Nosurprisingly,inaconversationIhad lastyear,anotherpostcommunistsubjectartcriticBorisGroysanalyzed interactivecomputerinstallationsinaverysimilarway). TheexperiencesofEastand Weststructurehownewmediaisseeninbothplaces.FortheWest,interactivityisa perfectvehiclefortheideasofdemocracyandequality.FortheEast,itisanotherform ofmanipulation,inwhichtheartistusesadvancedtechnologytoimposehis/her totalitarianwillonthepeople.(Onmodernartistasatotalitarianrulerseetheworksof BorisGroys.)Westernmediaartistsusuallytaketechnologyabsolutelyseriouslyand despairwhenitdoesnotwork.Postcommunistartists,ontheotherhand,recognize thatthenatureoftechnologyisthatitdoesnotwork,willalwaysbreakdown,willnever workasitissupposedto...(Forinstance,MoscowconceptualartistandpoetDimity PrigovdidaneventduringISEA'94inwhichheusedbusinesstranslationprogramsto

translateafamousnineteenthRussianpoembyPyshkinfromRussianintoFinnishand thenfromFinnishintoEnglish;hedeclaredthemistakesintranslationanewworkof art.)AWesternartistseesInternetasaperfecttooltobreakdownallhierarchiesand bringthearttothepeople(whileinrealitymoreoftenthannotusingitasasuper mediatopromotehis/hername).Incontrast,asapostcommunistsubject,Icannot butseeInternetasacommunalapartmentofStalinera:noprivacy,everybodyspieson everybodyelse,alwayspresentlineforcommonareassuchasthetoiletorthekitchen. OrIcanthinkofitasagiantgarbagesitefortheinformationsociety,witheverybody dumpingtheirusedproductsofintellectuallaborandnobodycleaningup.Orasanew, MassPanopticum(whichwasalreadyrealizedincommunistsocieties)complete transparency,everybodycantrackeverybodyelse. IapologizeifIammakingyou mad.Ipromisetowriteontheblackboard,untilthechalkrunsout:Internetisgoodfor thepeople,Internetisgoodforthepeople,Internetisgoodforthepeople,Internetis goodforthepeople.DownwiththeMuseum,DownwiththeMuseum,Downwiththe Museum,DownwiththeMuseum.WorkersoftheWorld,Connect;Workersofthe World,Connect;WorkersoftheWorld,Connect;WorkersoftheWorld,Connect.I promisetomarchinhappycolumns,screamingslogans,myfacereflectingtheshiny pixelsofnewversionofNetscapebrowser.Ideology,history,classstrugglearefinally over,replacedbyMicrosoftvs.NetscapewarandJavaobjects.LongLiveDigital Revolution! ButbeforeIgivein,Iwouldliketoofferyouonemorethought,the lastdownloadfrom"theenemyofthepeople"onemoreargumentaboutinteractivity asatotalitarianartform.Allclassical,andevenmoresomodernartwasalready "interactive,"requiringaviewertofillinmissinginformation(forinstance,ellipsesin literarynarration;"missing"partsofobjectsinmodernistpaiting)aswellastomove his/hereyes(compositioninpaintingandcinema)orthewholebody(inexperiencing sculptureandarchitecture).Computerinteractivearttakes"interaction"literally, equatingitwithstrictlyphysicalinteractionbetweenauserandaartwork(pressinga button),atthesakeofpsychologicalinteraction.Thepsychologicalprocessesoffilling in,hypothesisforming,recallandidentificationwhicharerequiredforusto comprehendanytextorimageatallaremistakinglyidentifiedstrictlywithan objectivelyexistingstructureofinteractivelinks. Thisliteralqualitycanbe seenasanotherexampleofalargermoderntrendofexternalizationofmentallife,the processinwhichnewmediatechnologiesphotography,film,VRhaveplayedakey role.Ontheonehand,wewitnessrecurrentclaimsbytheusersandtheoristsofnew mediatechnologies,fromFrancisGalton(theinventorofcompositephotographyinthe 1870s)toHugoMunsterberg,SergeiEisensteinand,recently,JaronLanier,thatthese

technologiesexternalizeandobjectifythemind.Ontheotherhand,modern psychologicaltheoriesofthemind,fromFreudtocognitivepsychology,alsoequate mentalprocesseswithexternal,technologicallygeneratedvisualforms. Interactivecomputermediaperfectlyfitsinthistrend.Mentalprocessesof reflection,problemsolving,memoryandassociationareexternalized,equatedwith followingalink,movingtoanewimage,choosinganewsceneoratext.Infact,thevery principleofnewmedialinksobjectifiestheprocessofhumanthinkingwhich involvesconnectingideas,images,memories.Now,withinteractivemedia,insteadof lookingatapaintingandmentallyfollowingourownprivateassociationstoother images,memories,ideas,weareaskedtoclickontheimageonthescreeninordertogo toanotherimageonthescreen,andsoon.Thusweareaskedtofollowpre programmed,objectivelyexistingassociations.Inshort,inwhatcanbereadasanew updatedversionofAlthusser's"interpolation,"weareaskedtomistakethestructureof somebody'selsemindforourown. Thisisanewkindofidentificationappropriate fortheinformationageofcognitivelabor.Theculturaltechnologiesofanindustrial societycinemaandfashionaskedustoidentifywithsomebody'sbodilyimage.The interactivemediaasksustoidentifywithsomebody'selsementalstructure.P.S.I developtheargumentsaboutmodernmediatechnologiesandexternalizationofmental lifeinmoredetailin"FromtheExternalizationofthePsychetotheImplantationof Technology."In_MindRevolution:InterfaceBrain/Computer_,editedbyFlorianRtzer, 90100.Mnchen:AkademieZumDrittenJahrtausend,1995.