Welcome to LE

Elo Vega


Self-immolation in the name of no action, of the forgotten, before the world's problems. Recited in Italian, the background sound is protest recordings of Mexicans in the United States. The representation of power with the presence of a helicopter, a fence and the police. All is immobilized in expectation of the potential conflict clearly alluded to by the statement's words.

Manifesto recited by a woman in Italian, through the poem Un solo camino, sección 10, by Frank Niels, on forgetting and personal conflicts facing reality. In the constant recitation it is possible to recognize one's own errors and imperfections when confronted by society. The first person subtly implies the spectator himself or herself, because potential failures are often common experience. This is an enumeration reminiscent of traditional liturgical prayers in the style of “I confess” or “sinful self”, but secular. The recognition of forgetfulness is not projected on any deity but to responsibility itself. Duplicated, by two moments of recitation, gives an echo of affirmation, a confirmation of what has been forgotten. It is not just an admission of error, but an acceptance of nature, atonement with self-indulgence.

“On May 2006, the organizations representing Mexican workers who work in the United States blocked the international border at San Ysidro between San Diego and Tijuana to protest the Sensenbrenner bill, HR 4437 (2005 Act for Border Protection, Antiterrorism, and Control of Illegal Immigration). “ Even without knowing the reason for the police presence, it imposes a strict respect and great visual force. In their inactivity, at a glance, slowed by the author, the piece is able to paralyze the spectator providing greater tension and depth to the text. A work in which the word is revealed as a representation, questioning any hierarchy, with an optimistic ending.

Technical datasheet

  • Title: Welcome to LE
  • Direction: Elo Vega
  • Production: Elo Vega / Multimediepoesi, Copenhagen´s International Poetry 2006. 2006.
  • Team:

    Text: Niels Rank, Un solo camino, sección 10
    Editing: Elo Vega

  • Duration: 00:03:48
  • Languages: Italian
  • Subtitles: English - Spanish
  • Original format: Mini DV
  • Formats: Betacam Digital - DVD
  • TV systems: NTSC - PAL
  • License: Creative Commons