Almost nobody goes to (Catholic) church anymore, social taboos seem to have been broken, and modern man has been freed from social and moral constraints. Nevertheless, many internet forums bear witness to how strong the need is for many people to communicate anonymously and confide in others. Consequently, the artist collective “Interne Mitarbeiter”has invented the contemporary confessomat.
The sinner enters the Confessomat (“Beichtomat”) and is greeted by a friendly voice, and can then communicate freely and anonymously – a basic prerequisite for the desired catharsis. The voice asks you to let your sins flow onto the paper … Once this is done, you pull your confession slip out of the typewriter and throw it into the city sin box, put on a repentant face and press the shutter of the camera.
The collective “Interne Mitarbeiter” (Internal employees) was founded in summer 2011 by the actress Klara Manzel and the author Eva Rottmann. “Interne Mitarbeiter” now has twenty members from the fields of theatre, music, literature and design. The internal employees Alireza Bayram, Nina Eugster, Klara Manzel, Victor Moser, Barbara Pfyffer, Eva Rottmann, Marie Ulbricht and Jeanne Werner are currently active in the Beichtomat project.
Confessomat, part 2, in Perla-Mode, 21 July to 4 August
All “urban sins” and “photographs of remorse” can be experienced visually and acoustically in a scenic exhibition in Perla-Mode. Of course, visitors are not given any clues as to which sin belongs to which face. You read the sins, look at the photographs, and try to piece them together. Which face is believed to be what? Why do we categorically exclude certain sins for a face? And – What is a sin? What torments people today?