Yes–No

  • Author

    Felice Hapetzeder

  • Country

    Sweden

  • Duration

    00:05:41

  • Production year

    2015

  • Type

    video / experimental video

  • Category

    Artwork

  • Tags

    scientology, nazism, Prora, personality test, intollerance

Prora is a beach resort in Germany, known for its colossal Nazi-planned tourist structures built in 1936-39. The eight buildings were identical, and were never used for their purpose. The complex has a heritage listing as a particularly striking example of Third Reich architecture. In 2008, plans were approved to turn Prora into a modern tourist resort. A yes–no question is a question whose expected answer is either "yes" or "no". The Oxford Capacity Analysis, is a list of questions which is advertised as being a personality test administered by the Church of Scientology. The test is an important part of recruitment and is used worldwide by the Church of Scientology. It has been criticized by numerous psychology organizations, which point out that it is not a genuine personality test and allege that Scientologists use it in a highly manipulative and unethical fashion. The questionnaire is reminiscent of methods used by social platforms as Facebook to collect data and of how advertisement and political propaganda is used to target feelings of inferiority and shame. In the work, the questions are connected to the actor. The viewer automatically reads his person in relation to the insinuations. The trip, which is depicted, is a journey to Prora. The work does not answer why the protagonist is going there but it is a lonely crossing, perhaps a metaphor for a transitory mental state. The work deals with destructive mechanisms of totalitarianism and sectarianism. And how mental conflicts connected to these are processed within the individual. The work is filmed at Prora and utilizes questions from the Oxford Capacity Analysis. Yes–No is a part of the Carousell project where artists Marit Lindberg, Felice Hapetzeder, Kristina Kvalvik and Henrik Lund Jørgensen exchange each other's unused video material and elaborate on it.

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