One of the spaces at SODAS 2123  is filled with moving, shining and sound producing artificial creatures. Looking separately, each creature may seem cute; it could resemble a toy, an animal from a children cartoon or a fairy tale book. However, all of the beasts move chaotically together and produce a heavy noise filled environment. When a spectator enters it, (s)he has to find the right way to move – or simply be – in the space. Meanwhile, it is difficult to hear or speak with others because of the hectic overwhelming sounds. Potential thoughts of animal-machine hybridisation may arise, that – together with considerations where to draw the line between the living and the lifeless, between a toy and something else – can be interrupted by an encounter with one of the creatures in the room. The viewer is now in a place where it is difficult to say whether it is a game or a nightmare.

Tomas Daukša (b. 1988, Palanga) in his creative work researches the qualities of various systems by provoking their transformations and, thus, revealing their working principles. He has completed his Ph.D. studies in Vilnius Academy of Arts in 2019 and is actively participating in exhibitions in Lithuania and abroad since 2009.