Amazon Border is an interactive installation or a digitally enhanced readymade. The work consists of a NATO barbed wire on a pedestal, extended by an ultrasonic range finder. This sensor detects the movements of viewers and plays audio files when the object is approached. The approaching viewer is first warned by the border police over a speaker not to come any closer. If this request is not complied with, the viewers find themselves in increasingly dramatic scenes, culminating in a confrontation between refugees and armed border police. The recordings that can be heard were taken from the EU's external border at the Spanish exclaves of Ceuta and Melilla.
The progressing process of fortification that can be observed is not only taking place on the outer edges of Europe, it is also having an effect on the inside. Societies within the EU seem to increasingly evolve a need for more security, even in the private sphere. This technology is also being used in private gardens and homes. Private individuals are more and more inclined to use professional border fortifications to protect their property. Manufacturers of fencing and border fortifications, many of which have their origins in the defense industry, are the main beneficiaries of this trend, which accelerated after the refugee movements of 2015.
NATO barbed wire and other parts of professional border fortifications can now be easily ordered online and are even enjoying growing popularity and five-star ratings on Amazon. The border is becoming not only a weapon against those outside, but also a commodity. Fears for personal safety and property are also reflected in xenophobic and racist comments on Amazon under these and other related products. But how does this trend change the border itself, its authority and the availability for crossing, along with the people who remain outside and inside it? The exhibition context of this work also features the packaging, invoice and comments of the object ordered on Amazon. This project was realized in collaboration with Nadia Pavón Císaro.