In Pap Souleye Fall’s practice, technological error serves as a space of refuge, concealed from larger systems of control.

An artist who also makes comic books, Fall has recently created work that emerges from the world of DEAD PIXEL (2020–ongoing) a narrative articulated through installation, performance, drawing, sculpture, video, and comics. Often used by gamers, the term “dead pixel” describes the black spots that appear on a screen when hardware fails and a pixel permanently goes dark, thus disrupting the continuous, smooth image of a video game. Fall imagines these malfunctions as portals to hidden realms of autonomy, as a way of exploring the dynamics of visibility and invisibility that shape contemporary society.

The story of DEAD PIXEL follows its titular protagonist as he eludes THE DATA COLLECTOR, a villain who aims to acquire DEAD PIXEL’s senses via their associated organs. At first, DEAD PIXEL willingly gave THE DATA COLLECTOR his eyes, ears, mouth, and skin before…