Call Me, Choke Me
Gunnar Green (German, born 1978)
Design Interactions Department
(est. 1989)
Royal College of Art (UK, est. 1837)
2008
Leather, aluminum, plastic, and
electronics
1 1/2 x 6 1/4 x 5 7/8"
(4 x 16 x 15 cm)
This device, a collar designed to be
worn around the neck, ties mobile-phone
activity to the practice of erotic
asphyxiation. With each phone call or
text message, whether or not it is picked
up or responded to, the collar tightens.
The callers and senders are unaware of
the game but still part of it. The pleasure
and pain of being constantly sought
after—normally expressed with frequent
neurotic glances at our device screens
and by hypocritical and empty complaints
about feeling drained—are embodied
by Gunnar Green in a sadomasochistic
contraption that subtly demonstrates
one of the tenets of contemporary
interaction. The wearer can loosen
the collar at any time by pulling a string.
Category: Bodies
Tags: Communications / Interfaces / Critical Design
