NO LAB in RMB City

Cao Fei (SL: China Tracy) + MAP OFFICE (Gutierrez + Portefaix)

At Prospect.1 New Orleans

November 1, 2008-January 9, 2009 (Preview days: October 30 & 31)

“NO LAB in RMB City” is a new collaboration between Cao Fei (SL: China Tracy) and MAP OFFICE created for Prospect.1 New Orleans, the largest biennial of international contemporary art ever organized in the United States. A special section of Cao Fei’s RMB City, a virtual art community under construction in Second Life, has been transformed into a stark, surreal vision of New Orleans. Based on MAP OFFICE’s research and drawings about post-Katrina New Orleans, the NO LAB parcel of land is a similar investigation into the landscape (physical, cultural, historic) of this unique city.

In Real Life, an iconic “carnival cart” designed by MAP OFFICE will display drawings, photographs and research materials, as well as a video and live projection of NO LAB in RMB City and computer terminals for public access. Inside Second Life, visitors (via avatars) can wander among the virtual shotgun houses and oak trees, and even drive a carnival cart through the empty streets, while encountering figures like Democratic Presidential Candidate Barack Obama and Waiting for Godot’s Pozzo and Estragon (in homage to Paul Chan’s reenactment of Samuel Beckett’s play in the Lower Ninth Ward). Of course, they will also experience a virtual storm that floods the entire land, and then recedes again, in an endless cycle…

Though distinct from the rest of RMB City by its striking black-and-white style (rendered by noted Second Life builder Sinewave Company), NO LAB is similarly a space for public interaction and dialogue. Though the full city is still under construction (opening in late 2008), avatars may also visit the Preview Center and the People’s Worksite to learn more about the city. Come visit NO LAB in Second Life and in New Orleans itself, to witness and participate in this ongoing discussion about urban space, society, and the trauma/drama of change.

NO LAB in RMB City: Movin’ on Up!

In Real Life: Contemporary Arts Center (CAC), New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

In Second Life: RMB City: New Orleans, RMB City 2 (96, 170, 31)
http://slurl.com/secondlife/RMB City 2/96/170/31/

Supported by Vitamin Creative Space (Guangzhou, China) and Lombard-Freid Projects (NewYork, USA)

NO LAB in RMB City Builder: Sinewave Company (UK)

Download press release here (PDF)