AK-47 / AR-15 | 2018
Two videos are screened in parallel, showing
fragmented images taken from videos found on the internet.
Originating in totally different contexts, they share the
same sculptural act: making a wooden assault rifle. The
video on the left and the text of the subtitles were taken
from a documentary about one of the clandestine military
training camps of a Colombian guerrilla group. The guerrillas build wooden
AK-47 rifles to use during the first stage of their
training. The video images on the right and the
accompanying audio come from a YouTube tutorial where a man in
the USA makes a wooden AR-15 rifle as a toy for his
children. Both wooden guns fulfill a first stage function
in a dynamic where the real weapon is a condition and
guarantee of two different ideals of "freedom". The AK-47
and the AR-15 are rifles that from historically
antagonistic positions have
fulfilled a similar function globally —but especially in
the Western periphery— perpetuating war as the dominant
narrative to achieve social change.