Chaos Theory \\ Metahaven

An audiovisual poem structured around the dialogues and wanderings of two characters confronting parenthood and childhood.

Chaos Theory is an audiovisual poem about parenthood and childhood, structured around the interactions of two characters, X and Y/Z. Metahaven’s film work is typified by devotional, yet abstracted sincerity. Avoiding the use of conventional narrative language and the binaries of information technology, Chaos Theory operates as a non-linear tale challenging the divisions between fiction and fact, shared realities and dreams. Shot on location in the outskirts of Amsterdam, the movie’s landscape appears in contrast with its dreamlike scenes and the open-ended poetics of its dialogues.

Referencing snapshots of public transport upholstery that appear throughout the film, reclaimed bus seating is presented as both a functional material and a metaphorical object, echoing X’s words: “I see us in things that are not us; in the drawings of the seats on the bus.” The fabric itself, named Vigor, is a globally used standard in public transport interiors, and its inclusion within the installation creates an unexpected connection between the film’s location in Amsterdam and the exhibition context of Barnsley. Mirroring the abstract shapes and graphic patterns that recur throughout the film, this everyday, hidden-in-plain-sight surface is recontextualised as a site of critical enquiry, inviting viewers to look beyond habitual forms of perception.

Chaos Theory (2021) by Metahaven was presented as part of AND Festival 2026 with support from Barnsley Council and the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The work is held in the permanent collection of Guggenheim Bilbao Museoa.