"Cyber"-barrier tape, the official march of the recently established German army "Cyber" command, audience.

In April 2017 the German military, the Bundeswehr, opened a new branch of service, based in nearby Bonn: Cyber, the fourth after army, air force and navy. (There is a lot to be said about the international arms build-up on the Internet. It's mutual assured destruction again, all the way.) To celebrate their new sphere of action, the Bundeswehr had an official march composed. The music has a jolly quality to it, sounding more like a funfair or carnival. Highly inappropriate. This march provides the musical backdrop for this installation, coming from a small speaker situated in its center.

The spiral is formed using barrier tape obtained from a local hacker club, which sells it at cost price. The hacker community uses the tape as a kind of practical joke device, roping off server cabinets for photo ops and declaring them safe from hacks. It is used to make fun of the policies of the governing parties, which are similarly symbolic and ineffective. The term cyber is considered an indicator: anyone who knows a little about information security doesn't use it. When it is being used, it is usually with political intent, to stir up fear or in order to campaign for stricter laws.

As you are approaching the spiral it's easy to underestimate its length. The distance from its edge to the center is only five meters, but the route in is around 180 m long. Walking into it, you realise there is quite a bit of distance to cover, and you soon fall into some kind of automatic trot. March music lends itself to that kind of situation, but the spiral makes you dizzy. There are people coming towards you, the corridor is too narrow to easily fit two, so there are traffic jams and blockages. You have to negotiate, make eye contact and make room for each other. It's awkward. Marching doesn't work.