Atmung 5 (1976)

Video recording, black/white, 6 minutes

I strangle myself for 3 minutes with a cloth.
I close the wet holes and breathe 3 minutes through a cloth gag.

On camera, Boegel is gasping for air, because he is preventing himself from being able to breathe. He is blocking his airways by stuffing them with fabric. Unlike the other Atmung works, in which the lack of air develops very gradually, here, the gag speeds up the process remarkably. Boegel's eyes are bulging through lack of oxygen, and all his blood goes to his head, making it swell up.