PSIU!

Psiu! is a sound/behavioural urban interventtion. The action is meant to be “invisible”, only affecting the soundscape and targeting individuals instead of a collective audience.

The word “psiu!” is an onomatopoeia for the sound made by pop-hissing the lips, ending in a light “eew” sound, like “pseew!”. It is a popular way of calling somebody’s attention on the streets, in many Brazilian regions (and maybe abroad).

BRIEF STATEMENT: Imagine that you are walking on a crowded street and somebody says “psiu!” to you. A little further, somebody else does “Psiu!” …and soon after, one more “psiu!”. By crossing the street, four more “psius!”…ten, fifteen “psius!” after: wtf is that?? This sensation is what “Psiu!” intervention intends to cause. With a minimum of 10 to 15 performers it is possible to do the action. It’s functioning is based rhythmic strategies some sympathy!! The group must choose a remarking trace to identifie the “victims”, for example: anyone who wears a red shirt will be “psiu” targets. This makes possible that some people, on the choosen path, will get more than one “psiu” from different strangers on the street.

Psiu! took place during the Poéticas de Multidão project, a series of five performatic urban intervention works, with Coletivo Construções Compartilhadas, in 2010. Here is the Psiu! page on the project’s website (in portuguese): http://multidaopoetica.wordpress.com/acoes/psiu/