Institutional Imponderabilia

When we look in dictionaries the meaning of the word search, we find something along the lines of "the act or effect of searching, examining closely, reviewing; inspection, detailed examination, enumeration, second glance or verification." The practice of searching is within the scope of actions carried out by security agents, whether public or private. However, what would be the basic criteria? When the act of searching can become violent? Which measures should be taken to separate the protection of a property from the invasion of someone else's space?

To raise another doubt, let us remember the last day of Marina Abramovic's retrospective show at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, when two security guards took the place of hired performers and put on a fleeting re-interpretation of Imponderabilia, not scheduled as an attraction for that day. Dressed in suits, the antithesis of the performative nudity that constitutes Abramovic's original piece, they stood facing each other in one of the passageways between the galleries. Moreover, stood there, narrowing the passageway, so that anyone wishing to pass through it would inevitably bump into them, and they would bump in turn.

In Institutional Imponderabilia, Amador e Jr. Segurança Patrimonial Ltda. restage Marina Abramovic’s performance and the touch among audience and performers as an protective, everyday search, taking place on both sides. By performing using a metal detector in the shape of a portal, two security guards add another layer of verification by standing inside. A dubious space is then created – the imponderable in the scope of property security. Who searchers who? Who touches whom? Everyone inspecting each other when they bump in – security guards and the audience, under the surveillance of the same apparatus, collaborating deeply to ensure safety.

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? (Who supervise the guards?): here we have an answer!