Rotem Tamir and Omri Zin create systems that suggest a performative presence, usually embodied by various stand-ins such as motorized mechanisms or modular structures. However, neither artist has performed within these systems. For “Larval Acceleration,” Tamir and Zin created two autonomous systems that accommodate two separate performances, built according to the physical capacities and imagination of each individual artist. The installation was anchored by two stations, akin to two factories, one producing shaped balloons, the other rendering animal fat into a grease-like substance. The two separate units constitute a single work that explores what it means to be in dialogue, not as a means to an end, but as a continuous process.

Tamir and Zin are a couple who, over the past ten years, have lived together, studied together, and shared studio spaces, but until now they have never worked together. The exhibition at Locust Projects gave them the opportunity to collaborate for the first time and explore their common interest in functional design mechanisms by creating a playful durational performance environment.