Joyride (TM)

Tony Oursler and Constance DeJong

1988, 14:23 min, color, sound

The allegorical Joyride (TM), a collaboration between Oursler and writer Constance DeJong, takes the form of a dreamlike roller-coaster ride through a corporate theme park, an odyssey of the spectacle of consumer culture and the American marketplace. The artists write that it is "inspired by institutional versus private-sector devotion to the 'transcendental.' As guardians of the cultural torch, theme parks and museums herd millions of thrill-seekers through a mental haze towards a re-shaped history and a sketchy future. Here objects and environment become one. A souvenir is purchased and relocated in the home; it is used to unlock the crowded and carbon dioxide-filled corridor to the `transcendental.'"

Video Engineers: Kate Craig, Tony Oursler. Audio Engineer: Iain Macanulty. Players: Susan Milne, Art McP, Bruce Fraser, Hank Bull, Karen Henry, Adam Thom, Kye Goodwin, Yvonne Parent. A Western Front Video Production in association with Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE).