Haldol

Janet Biggs, 2001
Three-channel SD video installation with sound
Running time: multiple loops of 3 to 4 minutes

The focus of Biggs' most recent work is the creation of installation pieces that trigger in the viewer a state that mimics that which the specific drug is meant to relieve. Haldol is an anti-psychotic drug marketed as a cure for the quick uncontrollable movements of Tourette's Syndrome. The alternating images are those of a young basketball player moving towards the viewer, a horse violently chomping at the camera itself, and a thunderous set of waterfalls. This repeated cycle of focused energy, harsh eruption, and loss of control signifies the collapse of focus and power, and a subsequent fall into a crisis of identity.