Disobedience has been used throughout history to describe the Greek temperament, said designer and engineer Nassia Inglessis. “From the cautionary tale of Icarus to Antigone, to Prometheus, Greek mythology shows a hero who disobeys the gods yet obeys his moral obligation to humanity and creates opportunity for its progress,” she said. It remained a potent theme for Greece at a time when the country is in the process of reinventing itself. “The question is, how can we both invite disobedience and harness its constructive form? For as long as there have been rules, there has been disobedience. Scientists discover by disobeying the assumptions of predecessors, children learn by disobeying the boundaries of parents, designers create by disobeying the norm.”

ANYΠAKOH explored this duality in the nature of disobedience. In the courtyard of Somerset House, visitors were presented with an innocuous wall. As they stepped inside, this dynamic skin flexed and morphed in response to their movements: they have transgressed a boundary, transitioning from obedient spectator to disobedient actor. “The structure becomes a physical megaphone for the emotions experienced in the act of disobedience,” said Inglessis, “from curiosity or frustration to temptation, excitement and wonder.”

The undulation and transformation of the structure – a steel spring skeleton built up with recycled plastic – was experienced by both the 'actor' and the audience in the courtyard. In addition, a dance performance produced by Farooq Chaudhry, founder and producer of Akram Khan Company, and choreographed and performed by Dickson Mbi, was broadcast to the public, bringing the piece to life.