Excuse me, can I get twelve minutes of your time? – ONX Seeds

“Excuse me, can I get twelve minutes of your time?” is a cybernetic installation that explores the relationship between presence and collective balance. Activated by human presence through a thermal sensor, the system requires twelve uninterrupted minutes to reach equilibrium. If this continuity is disrupted, it resets.

The duration reflects a threshold where the impulse to disengage emerges. On average in Europe, a person checks their phone every twelve minutes, or approximately 80 to 120 times per day. These micro-intervals of distraction make sustained presence increasingly rare. Is it still possible to remain present for twelve uninterrupted minutes? Drawing inspiration from the myth of Ananke, goddess of necessity and fate, the installation invites participants to negotiate time together through a responsive system, where equilibrium can only emerge through sustained, collective presence.