CyberSpaceLand (2003 – Present)
VJ Übergeek performs her psychedelic Textperience visual shows (mis)using a variety of performance gadgets including air mouse, Dance Dance Revolution pad, joystick, and Power Glove. The performances have evolved over the years from the scripted, physical comedy of botimation (2000 – 2003) to CyberSpaceLand, (2003 – Present), a club VJ show. Übergeek has performed CyberSpaceLand with DJ’s and musicians in nightclubs – and occasionally on the street – in North America and Europe.
CyberSpaceLand brings narrative and physical performance to VJing, with visuals drawn from text results of Google searches designed to elicit personal responses in the public space of the internet. Loose narratives evolve as the performance progresses, though like song lyrics, audiences need not make out every word. The software is designed as a visual instrument; Übergeek uses various gadgets to perform the shapes, colors, and textures of the visuals through hand and foot movements. There are some chaotic properties built into the software, so that Übergeek doesn’t know exactly what it’s going to do when she pokes at it in a particular way – but she has a sense of it. As with the Internet itself, performance is a combination of chaos and control.
Both performing art and performance art, CyberSpaceLand performances intentionally involve VJ Übergeek as character — one whose off-screen narrative interfaces with the story on-screen — and whose actions are different for every performance.
Amy has performed Botimation and CyberSpaceLand in over a dozen countries since 2000. CyberSpaceLand received an Honorary Mention from Prix Ars Electronica in 2004.
You can check out more CyberSpaceLand videos:
- A clip of one of Übergeek’s more theatrical performances at an art opening (2010)
- CyberSpaceLand studio reel, for a good look at the screen.
- A clip of Übergeek performing live with hip-hop musicians Leif Kolt and Dr. Nickel (2009)
- A clip showcasing Übergeek’s footwork on the Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) pad as visual controller (2010)
- Or a CyberSpaceLand bonus clip: CyberSpaceLand goes abstract in Punctuation’s Revenge (2010)
Or for a change of pace: Übergeek as an escaped office worker performing on the streets of Aberdeen, Scotland.
