They have developed a personalized lexicon of animal archetypes and narrative pattern designs, or digital codex, to assist in mythologizing the interwoven histories of European colonization, U.S. slavery/mass incarceration, and trending technochauvenist* settler-colonial projects privileging dominant caste economics, algorithmic exploitation of the historically oppressed, and cultural gentrification via commercial A.I. assisted technologies. Their vector-based imagery blends the framework of ancient Mesoamerican Codices, European Bestiaries, and Japanese Video Games with the seductive, attention-seeking interfaces of Big Data Technologies. Recent work addresses the ways in which government agencies and U.S. Tech companies have co-constructed a digital caste system, or A Cage Without Borders, in what can be defined as our current age of “The New Jim Code.”* Menchaca creates multimedia installations that apply a combination of printmaking, painting, and digital animation, exploring Latinx/Latiné identities in a hyper-mediated American landscape.
Michael Menchaca
A Cage Without Borders
Three-channel video installation
"A Cage Without Borders hijacks the commercial appeal of motion graphics on social media platforms in order to critique the US carceral state. This three-channel video installation runs a synchronized HD animation on three TV’s that are vertically oriented, mimicking the visual presentation of mobile devices. This installation addresses the ways in which Big Tech is currently operating as a de facto neo-colonial project enabling racialized state surveillance to oppress the most vulnerable communities. As I researched the tech industry during the creation of this piece, I learned about the anti-black, anti-indigenous, anti-immigrant algorithms embedded within internet connected devices and the social impact this is having on Black and Indigenous People of Color. There is a lot of evidence to suggest that Big-Tech is a boon for mass incarceration but until viewers can see this connection visually, it will remain hidden in plain site."
– Michael Menchaca
CLICK TO PLAY
About the artist
Michael Menchaca
They have developed a personalized lexicon of animal archetypes and narrative pattern designs, or digital codex, to assist in mythologizing the interwoven histories of European colonization, U.S. slavery/mass incarceration, and trending technochauvenist* settler-colonial projects privileging dominant caste economics, algorithmic exploitation of the historically oppressed, and cultural gentrification via commercial A.I. assisted technologies. Their vector-based imagery blends the framework of ancient Mesoamerican Codices, European Bestiaries, and Japanese Video Games with the seductive, attention-seeking interfaces of Big Data Technologies. Recent work addresses the ways in which government agencies and U.S. Tech companies have co-constructed a digital caste system, or A Cage Without Borders, in what can be defined as our current age of “The New Jim Code.”* Menchaca creates multimedia installations that apply a combination of printmaking, painting, and digital animation, exploring Latinx/Latiné identities in a hyper-mediated American landscape.
