The Sky Is Falling... is part of an ongoing series of performances that make up The Data Humanization Project.
In The Data Humanization Project, Jenik re-asserts the connection of data to human scale and context. Her project emerges alongside the field of data visualization and big data analytics, in which large and complex datasets are presented through visual effects that render it “readable.” In contrast to this trend toward distilling big data, each of Jenik’s 'data humanization' performances seek to physically “translate” a single datapoint so that it can be more fully comprehended by herself and others. Chosen datapoints are numbers that trouble or baffle her; that she seeks to imprint within her body.
For The Sky Is Falling... Jenik translates a contested or “dark” number – the number of civilians killed as a result of drone strikes piloted by the U.S. military.
Her performance ritual memorializes each of these verified civilian drone deaths through:
- One shovel of earth
- A small white cloth placed on each small earth mound
- A small stone placed on top of the cloth
- A short spoken prayer
Performed from sun up to sundown on November 13th, 2016; The Sky is Falling… comprises edited video of the live-streamed performance.