12th November 2010
Ikon Gallery, Birmingham
This three minute infrared night vision video by Anthony Goicolea sees a young boy sat in bed in what can be only described as a cabin in the middle of a forest. The camera zooms in on the boy who is nervously biting his nails, which continue to rapidly grow. What starts as an innocent boy with an everyday habit turns into a scary portrait of obsessive compulsive behavior showing numerous shards of nail clippings all over a saliva covered boy.
The fast pace of the video is complemented with a steadier soundtrack of woodland noises and a metronome heartbeat.
I really like the concept of an everyday habit becoming uncontrollable. I found the video really summed up such an addiction even though I found the eerie imagery uncomfortable to watch.