One-Meter Chain Reaction at UCL
About One-Meter Chain Reaction
One-Meter Chain Reaction is an ongoing participatory practice by Scrapheap Collective.
In the activity, participants form a linear body chain. The person at the front acts as the Leader, navigating and exploring the space, while the rest of the participants follow by observing and imitating the movements of the body in front of them. Each participant has the opportunity to become both Leader and Follower.
As movements are transmitted along the chain, each body interprets, translates, reduces, or transforms what it receives in different ways. In this sense, the chain is not a system of exact replication, but a structure that continuously generates deviation.
On 14 June 2026, One-Meter Chain Reaction was activated at UCL as part of the Spatial Signal programme. This iteration continued the basic rules of bodily following, imitation, and transmission, while situating them within a campus environment with a clear historical and institutional context.
Before the main activity, participants joined a historical and architectural tour of UCL. Through discussions of the university’s formation and its social and political background, participants gradually became aware that space is not a neutral container, but a structure continuously shaped by history, knowledge systems, and relations of power.
This was further confirmed in the practice that followed.
At the beginning of the activity, most bodies appeared relatively contained. Being inside a campus environment seemed to naturally produce a sense of “appropriate behaviour” for the space. Movements were cautious, restrained, and highly responsive to the surrounding atmosphere.
However, as the activity gradually moved from indoor to outdoor spaces, bodily states began to shift. Open space allowed for more possibilities. Movements became more extended, including jumping, pausing, bending, and more direct responses to the environment. The change of space directly affected the rhythm and expression of the body.
Unlike previous iterations, no strict spatial boundaries were defined for this session.
Usually, the movement area is clearly pre-defined. However, in this case, neither the organisers nor many participants had a complete understanding of the spatial structure of the UCL campus. People knew the main buildings, but not how they were connected, or what might be found between them.
As a result, the unknown itself became part of the work.
The chain moved through unexpected locations: narrow gaps between buildings, corridors beside the cafeteria, hidden stairwells, and transitional spaces that are usually overlooked.
Most unexpectedly, the group accidentally entered an exhibition space during one of the turns.
No one was aware that an exhibition was taking place there beforehand.
The body chain thus briefly intervened in an already existing display context. Two independent spatial systems overlapped momentarily, creating an unplanned encounter that reshaped the reading of both spaces.
The participants were highly diverse, including children, parents, and individuals from backgrounds such as philosophy and law. These differences were not only reflected in bodily experience, but also in how rules, responsibility, and space were understood.
In the feedback session, the relationship between Leader and Follower became one of the most discussed topics.
Some participants described a heightened concentration when following, where attention was fully directed toward the body in front. The body entered a state of continuous observation and response.
When roles shifted to becoming Leader, the experience changed significantly. Vision felt expanded and movement became more proactive. Actions that might normally feel awkward or self-conscious became more acceptable when performed collectively. The chain itself provided a sense of permission, encouraging participants to explore their relationship with space.
At the same time, another tendency also emerged.
Some participants experienced a sense of responsibility when acting as Leader. They became aware that their movements directly affected the entire chain behind them, which led them to act more cautiously, and in some cases, to shorten their time in the leading position and return to following.
Since the duration of leadership was not fixed, roles remained fluid throughout the process. Participants could adjust according to their comfort level. This openness made visible the shifting relationship between agency, responsibility, and bodily expression.
Attention and concentration also changed over time.
Although the rules were explained at the beginning, participants were initially easily distracted by the environment. However, as the activity progressed, many gradually entered a more immersive state in which movement became embedded within the chain structure.
At the same time, social roles did not disappear upon entering the activity.
It was observed that participants in caregiving roles, such as parents, frequently checked on children during the process and occasionally stepped out of the chain. This was not a violation of the rules, but rather an indication that real-world social relations continuously intervene in supposedly neutral systems of interaction.
The participating body and the caregiving body coexist simultaneously.
Real-life relationships constantly shape how bodies act, choose, and respond.
Another significant observation came from moments of refusal within the chain.
During transmission, some participants chose not to perform certain movements. These actions might have felt uncomfortable, awkward, or misaligned with their bodily state.
As a result, the chain was not always continuous.
Some movements were interrupted, some disappeared, and others were reinterpreted in the process of transmission.
However, these interruptions did not indicate failure.
Instead, refusal itself became a form of response.
It reflects how the body negotiates and evaluates rules, and how individuals maintain their position within collective structures.
From this perspective, One-Meter Chain Reaction is not a process of accurate replication, but a system of continuous deviation, omission, misreading, refusal, and reconstruction.
Participants also reflected on the structure of the chain itself.
Since the sequence is fixed, each participant only directly connects with the person in front and behind them. This creates strong local connections, while limiting wider relational awareness.
As a result, a new question emerged: what would happen if two chains were running simultaneously, each with different rhythms and logics? What kinds of collisions or deviations would appear when multiple bodily systems intersect in the same space?
Looking back at this iteration, One-Meter Chain Reaction is not simply a system of imitation.
It is a system that continuously exposes relations.
Space shapes the body, identity affects behaviour, responsibility alters attention, and the body feeds all of these back into the chain in real time.
The rules remain the same.
But every new context produces different outcomes.
And these unplanned deviations may be the most essential part of the practice.
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Acknowledgements
Special thanks to Bouncing Around for the invitation and support, enabling this iteration of One-Meter Chain Reaction to take place at UCL as part of the Spatial Signal programme.
Thanks also to Azure Bao for the UCL historical and architectural tour at the beginning of the event. The discussions around the university’s formation and its socio-political context provided an important framework for the subsequent bodily practice.
Special thanks to Xiaodu and Irin for documenting and photographing the event.
Finally, thanks to all participants.
Every imitation, hesitation, misreading, refusal, and deviation contributed to the ongoing formation of the chain.
One Meter Chain Reaction is not authored by a single individual, but continuously shaped through encounters and shared practice.
关于《一米连锁反应》
一米连锁反应（One Mieter Chain Reaction）是废料堆联盟（Scrapheap Collective）持续进行中的参与式实践项目。
活动中，参与者排成一条身体链条。最前方的参与者作为引导者Leader探索空间，其余参与者则通过观察与模仿前方身体的动作进行移动。每个人都有机会成为leader和follower。
随着动作在链条中不断传递，每个人都会对接收到的信息进行不同程度的理解、转译、删减或重构。因此，链条并非一种单纯的复制机制，而是一套持续生成偏移的系统。
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2026年6月14号，一米连锁反应在 UCL 校园内完成了一次新的实践，作为 Spatial Signal 项目的一部分，本次活动延续了身体跟随、模仿与传递的基本规则，并将其置入一个具有明确历史背景与制度结构的校园场域之中。
在活动开始之前，参与者首先参与了关于 UCL 历史与建筑的导览。从学校的建立过程到其背后的社会与政治背景，参与者逐渐意识到，空间并不是一个中立的容器，而是一种被历史、知识体系以及权力关系持续塑造的结构。
这一点也在后续实践中得到了进一步印证。
活动刚开始时，大部分参与者的身体都呈现出一种相对收束的状态。由于身处校园环境之中，身体似乎会自然地趋向于一种“适合出现在学校里的姿态”。动作是谨慎的，行为是克制的，许多人都表现出对周围环境的敏感与顾虑。
然而随着活动逐渐从室内转移至室外，身体状态也开始发生变化。开放的空间给予了身体更多可能性。动作开始变得更加舒展，身体出现了更多跳跃、停顿、弯曲以及对于环境的主动回应。空间的改变直接影响了身体表达的方式与节奏。
与以往实践不同的是，本次活动并未对移动范围进行明确限制。
通常情况下，活动会提前划定一个相对清晰的行动区域。但这一次，无论是组织者还是大部分参与者，对于 UCL 校园整体的空间结构都缺乏完整认知。人们知道主要建筑的位置，却并不清楚建筑与建筑之间究竟如何连接，也不知道穿过某条通道后会抵达什么地方。
因此，未知本身成为了活动的一部分。
链条不断被带向新的区域：建筑之间的缝隙、食堂旁的过道、楼梯背后的角落，以及那些平时很少被注意到的过渡空间。
最令人意外的是，参与者甚至在一次转向之后进入了一个展览空间。
在进入之前，没有人知道那里正在发生展览。
身体就这样突然介入了一个已经存在的展示语境之中。原本属于一米连锁反应的身体链条，与另一个独立运行的空间系统短暂地发生了重叠。这种偶然性为活动带来了某种无法预设的惊喜，也让空间本身获得了一种新的阅读方式。
本次参与者的构成也十分多样。
参与者包括儿童、家长，以及来自哲学、法律等不同学科背景的人群。不同背景带来的不仅是不同的身体经验，也包括对于规则、责任以及空间的不同理解。
在反馈环节中，Leader 与 Follower 的关系成为讨论最集中的议题之一。
一些参与者提到，当处于跟随者的位置时，他们会将注意力高度集中于前方身体的动作。身体仿佛被牵引进入一种持续观察与回应的状态。
而当角色转变为 Leader 时，身体经验则发生了明显变化。视野被打开，行动变得更加主动。一些原本会感到尴尬或害羞的动作，因为被集体共同执行而获得了新的合理性。链条的存在给予了行动某种勇气，也让参与者更愿意去探索自身与空间之间的关系。
与此同时，也有参与者表现出完全不同的倾向。
当他们成为 Leader 时，反而开始产生责任感。他们意识到自己的行动会影响后方整条链条，因此变得更加谨慎，并倾向于更快结束自己的引导阶段，重新回到跟随者的位置。
由于活动并未规定 Leader 的持续时间，因此角色始终处于流动状态。每个人都可以依据自己的舒适程度决定停留多久。这种开放性使得权力、责任与身体表达之间的关系变得清晰可见。
活动过程中，专注力的变化同样值得关注。
虽然规则在活动开始前已经被说明，但在实践初期，参与者仍然容易受到周围环境的干扰。然而随着活动推进，越来越多的人逐渐进入一种沉浸状态，身体与动作开始稳定地嵌入整个传递结构之中。
与此同时，现实身份并不会因为进入活动而消失。
有参与者提到，在活动过程中，一位承担照护角色的家长会时常关注儿童参与者的状态，并偶尔脱离链条。这种行为并非对于规则的破坏，而是揭示了现实社会关系如何持续介入一个看似中性的互动系统之中。
作为参与者的身体，与作为照护者的身份同时存在。
现实关系始终影响着身体如何行动、如何选择以及如何回应。
另一个有趣的观察来自于链条中的“拒绝”。
在动作传递的过程中，部分参与者会主动选择不去执行某些动作。某些动作可能令人感到不适、尴尬，或与个人状态产生冲突。
从结果来看，这意味着链条并非总是连续的。
有些动作会中断，有些动作会消失，有些动作则会在传递过程中被重新解释。
但这种中断并不意味着活动失败。
恰恰相反，拒绝本身也是一种回应。
它体现了身体对于规则的判断与协商，也暴露出个体如何在集体结构中保留自身的位置。
从这个角度来看，一米连锁反应所呈现的并不是一个准确复制的过程，而是一套持续发生偏移、删减、误读、拒绝与重构的系统。
此外，参与者也提出了对于链条结构本身的进一步思考。
由于队列顺序固定，每个人实际上只会与前后两位参与者建立直接联系。这种结构强化了局部连接，却限制了更广泛的身体关系产生。
因此，一种新的可能性被提出：未来是否能够同时运行两条不同的链条？当两套拥有不同节奏、不同逻辑的身体系统在同一空间中相遇时，又会产生怎样的碰撞与偏移？
回顾本次实践，一米连锁反应所呈现的或许不仅仅是一种模仿机制。
它更像是一套持续暴露关系的系统。
空间塑造身体，身份影响行为，责任改变注意力，而身体则将这一切即时反馈到链条之中。
规则始终相同。
但每一次进入新的场域，都会生成不同的结果。
而这些无法被预先设计的偏移，或许正是这项实践最重要的部分。
致谢
感谢 Bouncing Around（东奔西走） 的邀请与支持，使一米连锁反应得以作为 Spatial Signal 项目的一部分在 UCL 展开实践。同时感谢包岳涵江/Azure Bao在活动开始前带来的 UCL 历史导览。从校园的建立过程到其背后的社会与政治背景，这些讨论也成为了后续身体实践的重要语境。
特别感谢 小杜 和 Irin 对本次活动的记录与拍摄。
最后，感谢所有参与本次活动的参与者。
每一次模仿、停顿、误读、拒绝与偏移，都共同构成了这条不断生成中的链条。
一米连锁反应并非由某一个人完成，而是在一次次相遇与共同实践中被持续塑造。
— Scrapheap Collective/DongDong
16/06/2026
16/06/2026
Project Initiator: DongDong
Leading Artist: DongDong
Historical & Spatial Tour: Azure Bao
Text:DongDong
Photographer: Xiaodu, Zheng Rui
Supported by Bouncing Around