One-Meter Chain Reaction at Barbican Centre
The “One-Meter Chain Reaction” is an urban behavioral experiment initiated by Scrapheap Collective. The rule is simple: participants maintain a one-meter distance from each other and imitate the actions of the person ahead. Within this minimalist framework, space, body, and the group dynamically generate new possibilities: How does rhythm change? How is imitation triggered? How does public space get redefined through collective intervention?
Each iteration takes place in a different urban environment, producing distinct atmospheres and outcomes.
The Impact of Space on Behavior
At Barbican, we felt the subtle yet powerful influence of architecture, site, and atmosphere on the body. Every corner, every step, acted like an invisible instruction, quietly shaping our actions. Although the original game rule only required participants to copy the preceding action, when the first participant chose to squat by a wall, subsequent participants almost unconsciously adjusted their positions to align with the wall. This illustrates how bodies adapt and extend within specific spatial configurations, and how social imitation spontaneously emerges on a micro level.
As Michel de Certeau notes in The Practice of Everyday Life, walking is not just bodily movement but a “speech act.” The city is a “space of expression,” where pedestrians communicate their own stories through steps, directions, speed, and pauses. In the stark architecture of Barbican, our imitation became more than the replication of movement; it was a bodily language inscribing a text of the city. Every step, every squat, subtly reconstructed and redefined urban space.
During the activity, we observed a pervasive and often hidden human behavior mechanism—the drive to imitate. Once the first participant established a rhythm and style, subsequent “leaders” tended to unconsciously extend, replicate, or even repeat these behavioral patterns. This not only reflects habitual regulation within group behavior but also reveals imitation as a fundamental cognitive and bodily mechanism in social interaction, rapidly activated in real-time situations. Imitation serves both as a way for individuals to seek order and belonging, and as an “internalized norm” that silently reaffirms group safety and connection.
Pierre Bourdieu’s concept of habitus emphasizes how social norms are internalized through bodily practices. In this experiment, we witnessed the immediate production of habitus: imitation was not merely a game rule but a subconscious adherence, a bodily compliance and identification with the group.
Bodies as Extensions of Architecture
As the chain formed, we continuously constructed temporary “architecture” in the city: a human wall, a transient passageway, even a new boundary. Passersby naturally avoided our formation, making our bodies inadvertent spatial installations and extensions of Barbican’s architecture. When appearing in corridors, the line itself delineated space—it not only altered the function and flow of the environment but also revealed the potential of the body as architectural material.
In this process, bodies were no longer merely users or perceivers of space but became extensions and articulations of architecture. Through posture, movement, and arrangement, static spatial structures were transformed into dynamic experiences. Each action and movement constructed a temporary spatial order, rendering the scale, presence, and interrelations of bodies architecturally significant.
Body-Space Co-Creation
As Olafur Eliasson notes, “Space is not a static backdrop, but an event generated by our bodily participation.” When leaning on walls, navigating round flower beds, or lying by the water pool to observe the sky, architecture and the city ceased to be passive objects of observation—they became interactive spaces co-generated by our bodies.
Body Distance and Collective Intimacy
The activity began with each participant maintaining a one-meter distance. As the process progressed, this distance gradually decreased—not merely as unconscious behavior but as a subtle response shaped by group relationships and spatial environment.
Discussion revealed two main factors influencing the reduction of distance:
1. Spatial environment: In crowded areas, bodies naturally drew closer; in open spaces, participants maintained larger distances.
2. Familiarity with each other: As participants imitated each other’s actions, they gradually established observation and reliance. Initial strangeness was replaced by curiosity and trust, leading to shorter distances.
One participant shared that, though normally introverted, he would never spread his arms or swing his body in public. In the group, feeling supported from behind, he dared to try actions he would not normally attempt. This courage came from the group, which acted as a temporary refuge, allowing participants to temporarily release social constraints and embrace childlike playfulness.
Through these movements and observations, even without verbal communication, participants’ initial unfamiliarity was gradually replaced by a sense of intimacy, akin to friendship. The reduction in physical distance reflected both spatial perception and subtle interpersonal interaction.
The Role of Sound
In this iteration, sound became an essential dimension of body-space interaction.
At a mirrored doorway, the first leader made exaggerated facial expressions and emitted a muffled “blah blah blah” sound. As actions were passed along, subsequent participants imitated both movement and sound, eventually transforming it into an exaggerated vomiting sound—humorous and unpredictable.
By the water pool, we temporarily transformed the public space into a stage, with each participant taking turns shouting, “wonderful day.” Echoes of the architecture and imitated rhythms formed a chain of collective resonance.
Even knocking on metal handrails produced rhythmic sequences, amplified by imitation. The interplay of sound, architecture, and bodies created a perceptible rhythm, enhancing freedom of movement and bodily expression. Observers commented that this dimension heightened participants’ sense of vitality and agency, momentarily freeing them from the constraints of daily life.
Role Fluidity
Participants primarily experienced two roles:
Follower: Focused on replicating the actions ahead, blocking external distractions. Fully immersed, participants didn’t mind appearing awkward to onlookers.
Leader: Explored and guided, feeling the support and energy of the collective. Leaders created collective rhythms and guided the group’s movements.
One participant uniquely experienced a full three-step transformation: photographer → follower → leader. She noted the differences in perspective:
As a photographer, She observed overall spatial arrangement and the shifting order of the group;
As a follower, She focused on imitating the actions ahead;
As a leader, She sensed collective feedback and power.
This reflects Erving Goffman’s theory of role-playing: individuals adjust self-presentation and behavior according to social context, with different roles shaping perception and psychological experience. From a group behavior perspective, observing and imitating others enables individuals to acquire behavioral norms and psychological support, reconstructing self-awareness and spatial experience. Multi-layered role fluidity offered both a bodily experiment and a multidimensional study of social interaction, spatial relations, and human behavior.
Post-Activity Discussion
After the activity, participants engaged in lively feedback discussions. Observations included:
On space: How does spatial environment shape behavior and rhythm?
On the group: How does the collective amplify individual courage and foster immediate intimacy?
On imitation: How does imitation reveal deep social habits? How are norms internalized through the body?
On spectators: How does our action affect surrounding passersby, intervening in public space?
On spatial politics: When bodies form temporary architecture, do they redefine power and rights in space?
Participants noted that, even after the event, though still strangers, they developed familiarity with each other’s behaviors, establishing a sense of reliance. This sense of intimacy was a direct outcome of shared experience, observation, and imitation.
Conclusion
The “One-Meter Chain Reaction” at Barbican was more than a playful experiment—it was a philosophical exploration of urban space, social habits, and interpersonal connections. Through bodies, actions, and imitation, we witnessed micro-level social behaviors, and experienced the aesthetics of interaction between people and space, and between people themselves.
📍 Where will the next “One-Meter Chain Reaction” take place?
Stay tuned for new dialogues between bodies and the city.
— Scrapheap Collective/Dong
03/09/2025
03/09/2025
Project Initiator: Dongdong
Leading Artist: Dongdong
Video Editing: Dong
Poster Designer: Dana
Photographer/Videographer: Yunfeng Zhu/Guangyi Shen/Rui Zheng/Yining Wang
Participants:Yining Wang/Guangyi shen/Wang Bao/Siran Cai/Wenjia Gao
Text:Dong
Voices & Reflections:Wang Bao/Guangyi shen/Rui Zheng/Wenjia Gao/Yunfeng Zhu
Project by Scrapheap Collective