About the installation

Situational Compliance (2024 – ongoing) is an interactive audiovisual installation that playfully subverts the game of “Simon Says” to explore the dynamics of public surveillance. Using artificial intelligence and computer vision, the work exposes a system that observes, interprets, and directs participants’ actions, shedding light on the structures of control embedded in our digital environments.

Visitors are invited to follow simple instructions. As they perform each pose, it represents both a moment of individualism and simultaneously the negation of identity in a digitally mediated environment. The body becomes the medium of a subtle power game, caught between autonomy and algorithmic authority.

The installation’s technical components are deliberately revealed, offering a critical glimpse into the inner workings of such systems. By echoing real-world surveillance technologies, Situational Compliance questions our readiness to comply with commands, often without reflection, and explores the fine line between obedience and agency.

At its core, the piece prompts reflection on our behavior under omnipresent observation. It challenges us to consider how technology can simultaneously empower and constrain, revealing the complexity of human interactions in a world increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence and surveillance logic.

Acknowledgements
Manuel Bolduc and the Society for Arts and Technology for technical assistance.
Project produced as part of the MM-M-25 residency at Mois Multi and MUTEK, supported by the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec.

Credits
Concept and programming: Matthew Biederman
Audio, industrial design, manufacturing and additional programming: Lucas Paris

About the artists

Matthew Biederman ^CA/QC is a multidisciplinary artist exploring perception, data, and media systems through installation, performance, and video since the 1990s. His work has been exhibited internationally in major biennales and festivals, and is held in public and private collections across North America and beyond.
Lucas Paris ^FR/QC has been creating real-time audiovisual works, digital instruments, and custom software for over a decade. His research, applied to live performances, focuses on immersive audience engagement through multisensory and emotionally resonant content and scenography.

Situational Compliance by Matthew Biederman and Lucas Paris

A coproduction with Mois Multi/Les productions Recto-Verso

The production of this work was made possible thanks to the financial support of the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec