This installation combining art and scientific data was part of the COP21 United Nations Climate Change Conference, in Paris in 2015.
The starting point for EXIT was an idea by French cultural theorist Paul Virilio, who was invited by France's oldest private foundation for contemporary art, the Cartier Foundation, to be part of a 2008 exhibition reflecting on the environmental degradation of the planet.
Consequently, Virilio worked with statisticians, scientists, UNESCO, the World Bank and design studio Diller Scofidio + Renfro (behind New York's popular High Line) to create EXIT, which premiered as part of the 2008 exhibition Native Land, Stop Eject.
In a video shown within the installation, Virilio explains the inspiration for the project thus:
"In 2008, 36 million people were displaced [globally]. The 21st century will be the century of mass migrations: a billion people in the next 50 years is the figure predicted. The whole world situation will be disrupted."
EXIT visualises the data of these mass migrations over the last decade or so, as well as exploring specific causes and consequences – such as war, natural disasters and climate change. The installation was updated for the COP21 conference, where it showed at the Palais de Tokyo.
The installation is comprised of a 180-degree video installation on which six themed chapters play out, over 45 minutes. You can dip in for a short moment, or stay for the full duration.