RELUCTANCE MARATHON
Media installation
Author: Olesya Ilenok
The work was created especially for the exhibition "Stop on the Kosmonavtov!"
Curator: Svetlana Usoltseva
Cinema Cultural Center "Omega"
The video installation is introduced in the advertising media of the Omega cinema located on Kosmonavtov Avenue. 3 videos can be found on the big screen in the entrance area of the cinema. 8 images randomly appear among the movie advertisements.
An interesting fact: there are about 420 street trash cans on Kosmonavtov Avenue. It is obvious because the cans will meet the pedestrian about every four steps. What purpose is served by such a number of these attributes of the urban environment?

Asking these questions, Olesya Ilenok suggests a new function for small architectural forms. "Reluctance Marathon," based on trending social media courses, proposed engaging in mindfulness exercises with the help of 420 trash cans. It is symbolic that they are located on Kosmonavtov Avenue. Space, as the ultimate goal of the conscious human soul, seems to invite one to complete the ritual of purification from aggravating thoughts.

You can see the visualization of the idea with the new functionality of the urns in the video. Also, you can read the author's thoughts options for participation in the Marathon.

To complete the Marathon* you will need:
1. Write out on separate pieces of paper the 420 thoughts you would like to get free of.
2. Walk the path of awakening along Kosmonavtov Avenue from the beginning to the end, back and forth, dropping one piece of paper into each trashcan.
*The effect of the Marathon of Unwillingness is not guaranteed, but it is possible.

Photo credits: Tatyana Douksha, Culture of Yekaterinburg media
2022