Bad Research (2016-2019)

Bad Research was a performative collaboration between Ari-Pekka Leinonen and Dan Allon, started in 2016. The project transcended cities and countries, narratives, and practices. It is comprised of different, yet well connected episodes; each is dedicated to a place on earth, and unfolding story and a performative rolling action of collecting material and digesting it. Work was documented into a web page consisting videos, audio, pictures and text.

With five different finished episodes, we have consulted Bad Research tackling topics of terrorism, fake news, national histories, current politics, rock music, psychoanalysis and humor to mention a few. We have openly expressed our naive and irresponsible prejudiced attitudes while inspecting various serious phenomena. Our work tries to expose via laughter things that oppresses us, as well as the mechanisms that make us classify and discriminate.

Episode 1 - An ecoterrorist wants to start a new religion in Jerusalem
Episode 2 - A duo of artists talk about life, in the time of the 2016 US-election
Episode 3 - A recruitment of Tahini-based terror group and its dismantling
Episode 4 - A philosopher criticizes cartoonist for "disgraceful" Holocaust art and reconsiders the limits of humor
Episode 5 - A duo of historical kings, go through therapy and compose a rock opera http://unpracticedknowledge.com/

Archive view of the original website www.bad-research.com

EPISODE 5

2017 Bad Research 5: ROKKENROLLERS - Unpracticed Knowledge, audiovisual performance 56 min, DeTank, Bruges Belgium

This work by Ari-Pekka Leinonen and Dan Allon (aka Bad Research) is a site-specific multi-disciplinary performance. The work evokes questions regarding the nature of artistic research, the relationship between war and humor, and interweaving the history of conflicts with the history of rock music.

This episode, the 5th they created, consists of a rock opera, alongside with a musical release entitles "ROKKENROLLERS – Unpracticed knowledge," and multi-layer video works, some stand for video-clips for the songs. All material was created under a disguise of a multitude of characters, mainly those of two obscured generals who came to Brugges to overcome a trauma through making music. The performance, video, and album, which all to be featured on a unique website, combine the history of rock and war, which was initially contradictive, in a hilarious dialog.

The exhibition would suggest three ways to experience the episode:

• A live performance, including psychotherapy sessions, and a concert of the song, accompanied by the animation videos.

• A listening room for an in-depth listening experience of the rock opera.

• A "Bad Research" library, in which the spectators can go through the story on the website. In addition, a small numbered edition of the album for sale.

ROKKENROLLERS featuring
Proxy Muzak
Rolling and Stoned
Hummus Sexuals
The Waving Sideburns
The Kiss Singers
Eggy Poop
Cream Kingdom
Jimmy Schmendrix
Radio Floyd
Frank & Shappa
The Cutting Heads