On air from 14h till 15h
Die Gartenlaube (c. 1858) gestures toward a once-popular, unethical spectacle: ratting, or rat-baiting, was a blood sport in which dogs – most often terriers known as ‘ratters’ – were set loose in a pit of rats, timed and wagered upon for their massacre. Now largely outlawed, it remains a stark image of desire, instinct, and abuse. Ratters were also tasked with curbing rat populations in urban areas. Seen today, this illustration might echo differently. We move through our own dusty cities in states of self-rattilation – driven, chasing meanings and missions. At times, we throw ourselves to the dogs, caught in cycles of urgency, self-sacrifice and stress-driven fatigue, waiting for the dog days to pass. Perhaps what remains to be questioned is not the performance itself, but how and why we continue to chase (and be chased), and what it might mean to step outside the pit at last.