Uber Existence

2020-2021

Project

Uber Existence is an "existence proxy" service that provides the very act of "being there." Upon accessing the official website (uberexistence.com), users are presented with a lineup of bodies available as "commodities." They select an "Actor" (the existence proxy) based on the location they wish to visit or the type of body they desire to inhabit. By connecting with the Actor through a dedicated app and manipulating their body via remote instructions, the user can truly "exist" in that physical space. The service’s tagline is: "Stay home, and go out."

Hanagata implemented this service alongside engineers and began living as one of the Actors. While recording the strange occurrences that arise when one’s own body is taken over by another, he explores the nature of labor, freedom, and the state of the "self" in the modern age.