‘Breakroom’











‘A meeting on the second floor’

Phatic Utterances

A colaborative exhibition with Heidi Holmström, exploring the topic of ‘phatic utterances’. Diving into the functions of small talk and chit-chat.

‘Breakroom’ (Baroeg Mulder)
One of the rooms in the exhibition takes the unmistakable form of a coffee breakroom. During scheduled coffee breaks the audience undergoes a process that starts with a cup of coffee and an automated response to the situation: performing the act of chit-chat, followed by a realisation of that performance, exposing the unspoken scripts we follow in certain situations.
    A collection of mugs with typical coffee-mug texts is provided for the coffee breaks.

‘A meeting on the second floor’ (Heidi Holmström and Baroeg Mulder)
An iPad frames a part of two rooms and a door connecting them. The parameters of the frame are prominently marked with blue tape, visible to the audience, invisible to the camera. 

Dambruggestraat 356, Antwerpen,

2023