Page 71 - Studio International - September October 1975

TWO ROOMS /RELATIVE SLOW-MOTION 1974

A performance begins at a specific recorded 'memory' from (about) the
time as the audience separates into two same period of time in the past (shared)
audiences, one in either room. time continuum.
A recording (from Camera A1 and Although the two machines' rates of
Camera B1 respectively) of the slow-motion appear correspondingly
responses of each audience is played calibrated, an audience comparing the
back to them in slow-motion on Monitor image of itself replayed in slow-motion
a few seconds after the beginning of the with the (live) view of a second
performance. Simultaneously Monitor 2 audience seeing itself in slow-motion
in the room displays as a live image the has no absolute way of judging:
other audience observing itself on the A. the synchrony of the two audiences'
screen delayed and in slow-motion. relative times - positions - in the past as
Both of the machines' rates of slow- seen in the images playing back at
motion, only slightly slower than reality, present time.
are mechanically adjusted to be the same. B. whether the speeds of the two slow-
Because the tape seen on Monitor 2 motions are the same, relative to each
in the room is replayed in slow-motion, other.'
the delayed time between its recording
and its playback increases continuously
and progressively — the views seen by
the audiences from a time period sliding As the playback is very little slower than
further back in their pasts (from 'short- reality, it may be difficult to distinguish the
term' memory connected to their present relative speed of an audience's present-time
activities to memory.) metabolic response and their previous time
An audience can objectively observe the responses slowed-down on the screen.
effect of the delayed slow-motion A person in one audience is only able to
playback on a second audience at the establish the synchrony of the relative
same time as it (subjectively) observes slowness of the playbacks by recalling and
itself. One effect of an audience correlating what they did (at the moment in
the past presently showing on their screen)
watching itself in slow-motion for a to what they saw the other audience doing at
period of time may be to slow down its that same moment (which they would have
present time movement (this effect might seen on Monitor 2) in the past, and see if
be observed in watching the other presently (on Monitor 2) the other audience
audience).' is observing those same past activities on this
Each audience would observe a audience's Monitor t.
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