Artist book, 120 pages, 25 × 20 cm, 2007

based on the performative installation in the P74 gallery, Ljubljana

photography: paula roush and Dejan Habicht



"the highly politicised artist paula roush visited the gallery p74 for the exercise sos:ok (save our souls: zero killings). her company msdm (mobile strategies of display and mediation) staged the largest ever simulation of a terror attack in central slovenia to test the readiness of its emergency services. policemen, firefighters and ambulance personnel were involved in the mock chemical gas attack, which was held in the art gallery in ljubljana, the largest city in slovenia.



during the exercise, around 400 volunteers from the army and red cross pretended to be victims of a nerve gas attack and underwent a decontamination procedure, which involved having their clothes cut off and entering a special disinfecting shower, with the more seriously injured taken to hospital.

a l jubljana police spokesman said the exercise was as realistic as possible."