Play Station™
VR Work Simulator, Video, Installation, 2017
Play Station™. Funemployment, Forever. Farsight Corporation welcomes you to Play Station™, our new range of automated workplaces! Enjoy the 9 to 5 life of leisure as never before.
玩站™。永远的福利待遇。 远见公司欢迎你来到玩站™，我们全新的自动化工作场所！享受从未如此悠闲的朝九晚五生活。
For Art Night London, Lawrence Lek invites audiences to explore the contradictions of a future post-work society with a new virtual reality video game. Set in 2037, Play Station™ takes place in a science fiction version of the White Chapel Building, transformed into the London headquarters of a mysterious technology start-up known as Farsight.
A world leader in digital automation, Farsight trains employees to outsource their jobs as much as possible, rewarding top performers with access to exclusive entertainment and e-holidays.
Access to this virtual world is through a mandala-like installation of VR headsets, video training guides, and voiceover tutorials, allowing the audience to participate as players or observers. Housed in the cavernous atrium of the recently re-invented White Chapel Building, Play Station™ reflects on the continuously changing boundaries between workplace and playground.
Trailer
Installation at Art Night London
More info︎︎︎
Installation at MoCA Busan
More Info︎︎︎
Credits
Play Station by Lawrence Lek
Animation by Clifford Sage
Architecture by Johnny Lui
Music by Seth Scott
Voiceover by L Mehmet
Translated by Joni Zhu
A co-commission by Art Night and Outset Young Patrons Circle. Supported by Derwent London. Curated by Fatos Ustek
Animation by Clifford Sage
Architecture by Johnny Lui
Music by Seth Scott
Voiceover by L Mehmet
Translated by Joni Zhu
Commissioned for Art Night London
Saturday 1 July 2017, 6pm - 4am at the White Chapel Building, 10 Whitechapel High Street.
Saturday 1 July 2017, 6pm - 4am at the White Chapel Building, 10 Whitechapel High Street.
A co-commission by Art Night and Outset Young Patrons Circle. Supported by Derwent London. Curated by Fatos Ustek
Related Projects
Play Station is part of a wider ‘Sinofuturist’ fictional universe where the AI conglomerate Farsight Corporation develops art and entertainment. They also appear in:
︎︎︎ the CGI film Geomancer (2017)
︎︎︎ the video game series 2065 (2018-ongoing).
︎︎︎ the site-specific installation FTSE (Farsight Stock Exchange) (2019).
︎︎︎ the CGI film Geomancer (2017)
︎︎︎ the video game series 2065 (2018-ongoing).
︎︎︎ the site-specific installation FTSE (Farsight Stock Exchange) (2019).