WASH CYCLE, by Xingxuan Wang (China)
Wash Cycle constructs a continuously operating artificial ecosystem from a
washing machine, discarded computer cases, circuit boards, and plastic toys. By
removing everyday domestic appliances from their original functions, the work
transforms “washing” into a mechanism of circulation, consumption, and
reconfiguration. Inside the washing-machine drum, LEGO pieces are repeatedly
spun, collided, and rearranged, while the surrounding accumulation of electronic
waste appears as the residue left behind by cycles of technological renewal.
Together, these elements form a landscape suspended somewhere between a
domestic environment, an industrial ruin, and an unnatural habitat.
The title Wash Cycle refers both to the repetitive mechanical programme of the
washing machine and to broader technological cycles of consumption,
upgrading, and disposal. Once devices lose their intended functions, they do not
simply disappear; they continue to participate in the environment as materials,
remnants, and infrastructures. From a posthuman perspective, the work
proposes that machines should not be understood merely as tools serving
human needs, but as ecological participants that coexist with—and continually
reshape—humans, materials, and environments.
A photo of the work is exhibited.
