Denver Exhibit: The CELL: Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere - Understanding the Threat of Terrorism

If in some twisted way you want a taste of what a terrorism attack feels like, then The CELL, near the Denver Art Museum is for you. While not directly affiliated with the Denver Art Museum, The CELL (Center for Empowered Living and Learning) is a non-profit, high-tech exhibit experience, called Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere: Understanding the Threat of Terrorism.

The CELL's intriguing front entrance is located directly across from the Denver Art Museum's Hamilton Building, next to Mad Greens Restaurant. A small wall of video screens continually shows random footage of news clips about terrorism under ominous red letters of the exhibits title: Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere...

Given that The CELL is located near the Denver Art Museum, one might expect an exhibit that explores a broad stroke of art inspired by the threat of terrorism. Perhaps a collection of the numerous works from humanitarian projects that have given children and terrorism survivors a voice through art. Instead, what lies in store for curious visitors is an overbearing, seemingly political propaganda that bangs the ambiguous message about terrorist threats over our heads.

The exhibit's slick design, high-tech gadgetry and ominous presence don't hide what feels like a political scare tactic. Under the guise of being a non-profit art exhibit, funded by a philanthropist with no ulterior agenda, what is the unsaid motive behind the message? While The CELL s scattered history lesson is like walking through a dreamscape produced by the History Channel, the true message conveyed through the exhibit seems to be "Be Afraid, be very Afraid."

Upon entering the first segment of The CELL's exhibit you are encaged in a hallway of video screens, drowned by red and blue lightening. It's sleek and futuristic, giving one the sense that you are in for a treat, all the while knowing that disturbing content awaits. Entrapped by large steel doors that open and close automatically, this introductory segment is somewhat claustrophobic. We are forced to view the videos and it is not the last time this exhibit experience will cage you in.

After several scattered displays about terrorism attacks and replicas of the weapons and devices of terrorists, we are enclosed in another video hallway. This time the walls are lined with large video screens showing footage of any peaceful, sunny day in downtown Denver. The CELL's ominous message lingers, Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere, and we know what's coming. The peaceful video footage erupts into a blaze of explosions, sirens and screams, as we are forced to experience the immediate aftermath of a terrorist attack.

These forced exhibits may emulate The CELL s overall message that we don't have a choice when it comes to terrorism. The attacks are sudden and quite literally can happen to anyone, anytime, anywhere, as history has shown. The exhibit seems focused much more on fear-mongering, rather than education or empowerment. We learn little more than the news-headline bullet-points of terrorist attacks, and not the historical context or motivations that exist behind so much of global terrorism.

One feature of the exhibit shares what may be the most substantial bit of information, the direct cost of human life. You are given an identity card before entering the exhibit that contains the story of a real human life affected by Terrorism. At different points throughout the exhibit you swipe the card to learn about this life's entanglement with terrorism. Finally, learning what attack this life suffered through and if they survived or died. In the end our empathy with these lives reinforces The CELL s message that terrorism can strike anyone, anywhere, anytime.

While an effective tactic to make the exhibit experience fulfilling on a personal level, it is trumped by fixed political messages and vague factual statements. There is one wall of the exhibit with title boards that read "Fact of Myth", from which you lift an informational tidbit. While most of the facts or myths are obvious assumptions, there are a few that left this visitor wondering what political motive resides behind The CELL's exhibit. You'll have to use your own judgment in these matters, and regardless of my own slightly disturbed visit it is a memorable exhibit that is worth the experience.

The CELL's exhibit harbors a message as vague as the global mission of "war on terror." It is a fascinating peek into the phenomenon of terrorism and its many forms; especially for those who've avoided the saturation of news headlines. If you have managed to save yourself from the terror of media saturation for the past 50 years, then you can get it all in one shot by visiting The CELL's exhibit in Denver.

The CELL: Anyone, Anytime, Anywhere - Understanding the Threat of Terrorism.
At of the Museum Residencies, across the plaza from the Hamilton Building of the Denver Art Museum.
Closed Monday, 10am - 5pm Tuesday - Saturday, 12pm - 5pm Sunday
$8 Non Colorado Residents, $6 for Residents and Government Employees
Thecell.org
303-844-4000