To Prove Her Zeal was a 5 day LARP set in a seven-story mill tower and communal farm in Wassaic, New York.

Anachronistically imagining themselves inhabiting a setting part late 1800’s unorthodox monastic commune, part 1980’s new age retreat, and part extra-terrestrial biosphere, the players engaged in daily farm tasks and group encounter sessions. As their characters developed, these emotionally intense sessions focused on their interpersonal relationships were led by an elusive artificial intelligence, played by the artist, and embodied by an abstract sculpture.

The installation at The Aldrich presented the artist’s documentation of this fictional world, while a second video documented Condon’s co-creative workshop process. The daily workshops included topics such as plant communication mechanics, culture building, flow state theory and player psychology, and character building techniques.

Game Design: Brody Condon
Runtime Management: Bjarke Pedersen
Camera: Paul Shin
Production Manager: Kate Scherer
Costume Consultation: Feral Childe
Plant Communication: Asher Hartman
Players: Ida Tjell, Martin Elricsson, Marie Holm-Anderson, Jaakko Stenros, Johanna Koljonen, Torgny Aanderaa, Nina Runa Essendrop, Kristoffer Thuroe

Special thanks to Monica Ramirez-Montagut, The Wassaic Project, and On Stellar Rays, New York.

A commission by The Aldrich Museum of Contemporary Art.