Convention takes place behind a closed glass door. A piano version of Somewhere over the Rainbow, the famous song sung by Judy Garland that was later to become the anthem of the gay and lesbian movement, emanates softly from the room on the other side. Melián originally designed the installation for the side room of a Hamburg bar, also separated off by a glass door, through which one could see, as in the reconstruction, hovering objects covered in shimmering silver material. These figures, which are not so much tangible representations of bodies as non-gender-specific dummies–revolve as if dancing. Cut off from the real action, visitors face an enigmatic space whose remote background sounds and noises suggest a place that will forever remain inaccessible to them.
