MISSION 457X
Interactive public art installation
A Visit to Installation Nation: Dan Grossman, NUVO Newsweekly
“Installation #2—dubbed “Mission 457X” by its creators, Matt and Holly Sommers—featured dozens of alien objects supposedly found at an undisclosed “Unidentied Fallen Vessel” crash site. Said items were catalogued, assigned serial numbers and put on display. According to the sign on the trailer, visitors were “invited to observe the artifacts and contribute to the civilian conjecture database to help explain this phenomenon and its components.”
Accordingly, each visitor was handed a slip of paper on which to write down their hypotheses of the purposes for which these objects were created. Visitors, including many kids, seemed as absorbed as I was in diligently trying to come up with ideas for the funky items on display. I ended up holding what seemed to be an antique telephone receiver combined with some sort of pneumatic device. My conclusion, after some pondering, was that this was a device that powered a telephone receiver with (alien) intestinal gas. The home planet of this alien Alexander Graham Bell—I’m hazarding a guess—is Planet Goodwill.
In any case, “Mission 457X” was the clear standout among the eight installation; it was worth the five dollar admission just to see it. The amount of time and care they took in presenting their installation to the public was commendable, as well as their sense of humor. Both the creators were on-hand, along with their daughter—all dressed in orange jumpsuits—to explain their installation to visitors and act as scientific curators/guides.”