Sculpture in the City, 11th Edition
Leadenhall Market, London
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Invasion, 2019. Neon, 198 x 186 cm.
Installation view, Sculpture in the City, 11th Edition, Leadenhall Market, London. Photography © Nick Turpin.

Invasion, 2019. Neon, 198 x 186 cm.
Installation view, Sculpture in the City, 11th Edition, Leadenhall Market, London. Photography © Nick Turpin.
Invasion is a part of Shezad Dawood's Encroachments, a series that takes an oblique look at the relations between Pakistan and the US since partition in 1947. The work explores video games as Cold War propaganda, building on an earlier use of science fiction films to fulfil the same function. An invading monster emerges from the arcade into the public realm and takes the form of a neon sculpture, reminiscent of characters in video games fighting off the 'other', represented as a kind of boogeyman. The neon addresses the space that exists at the corner of our eyes, where images - from moments in childhood video games to wartime scenes - blend into each other, flickering between reality and fiction.