The Thousands

Marco Fusinato’s ‘THERE IS NO AUTHORITY‘ has dimensions of 9.25 x 12.04 metres, and is made from “100% New Zealand Wool rug, monitor, camera”. A giant reproduction of a slogan the anarchist punk band Crass would DIY in black paint on white cotton to stick up behind the stages at their shows, Fusinato’s version has been hand-woven by people who are expert at doing that. It takes the subversiveness of the message into contention with a different set of power relations – that of the gallery and the viewer.

It’s a message in black and white, alright, but that doesn’t make it clear. There’s a choice of either squeezing into the tiny space of the floor left clear at the top of the carpet and squinting to try to read it upside-down; or shuffling awkwardly down the also-tiny space at the sides into the huge amount of bunker-like gallery floor that’s left free; or walking across the carpet feeling like you might get in trouble. We’re not here to tell you what you should do, because, you know, ‘THERE IS NO AUTHORITY’, but your choice will say something about you. And, speaking of you, go and have a look in that monitor.