Landlocked 2015，Video，5’00”，Courtesy of the artist

Argentinian artist, Miguel Angel Ríos’ video works depict the often brutal realities of Latin American society, addressing issues of power, apathy and violence. Combining specific anthropological and geographical contexts of his native region, innovative socio-political narratives and original production techniques, his works are embodied in wordless cinematic narratives. 

Landlocked is a 5-minute video featuring a pack of four wild dogs furiously and urgently digging separate tunnels to get to the “other side”. The apparently fruitless work of the dogs are heightened in tension, with Ríos withholding information about their final goal and letting his viewers imagine that goal through the sound of waves and the exultant barking of the dogs.

This work alludes to the psychogeography of landlocked nations like Bolivia which lost its coastal region to Chile. Despite being extremely close to the ocean, it has no access to export goods and is severely impaired to bring in revenue. The work can also be interpreted as a metaphorical representation of a universal quest for freedom.