# Instructions for Something to Happen
*(or how to approach what is sometimes called art)*

### 1.
Do not begin by making a work.

Begin by provoking a situation.

If an object appears, let it exist,
but do not confuse it with what matters.

### 2.
Take anything:
a sound, a piece of code, a recipe, a conversation.

Treat it as if it were a system in potential.

Observe it until it stops being “that thing”
and begins to behave like something else.

### 3.
Set a rule.

Then another.

Not too many.

If the rules produce nothing, change them.
If they produce too much, constrain them.

Distrust absolute freedom:
it usually produces noise.

### 4.
Do something with those rules.

Do not overthink it.

Allow the process to move far enough
to leave traces.

### 5.
Stop before you understand everything.

If you understand it completely,
it is probably no longer useful.

### 6.
Leave a remnant.

It can be:
- an object
- a recording
- an interface
- an imprecise memory

It does not need to be clear.
It does not need to be complete.

### 7.
Allow someone else to encounter that remnant.

Do not explain too much.

If they ask “what does it mean?”,
resist the temptation to answer.

### 8.
Observe what happens.

If nothing happens, do not force it.
If something happens, do not try to fix it.

Remember:

what occurs does not belong to you.

### 9.
Do not expect understanding.

Expect deviations:
- incorrect interpretations
- unintended uses
- side effects

This is often where things become interesting.

### 10.
Do not trust technique.

It can help, but it can also conceal.

A flawless execution may produce nothing.
An error may open everything.

### 11.
Assume you are not the only author.

Consider:
- where your rules come from
- who else is involved
- what systems were already in place

Authorship is often reconstructed afterward,
like assembling a story from scattered pieces.

### 12.
Do not worry about permanence.

Some things work better when they disappear.

If something remains, it will be a trace.
If nothing remains, that also counts.

### 13.
Do not use the word “art” too soon.

If you use it, clarify it.

If you cannot clarify it, leave it suspended.

Sometimes it is better to work without naming.

### 14.
Repeat the process.

Change the rules.
Change the medium.
Change the context.

Observe what remains.

That is what matters.

### 15.
If at some point something activates—
a shift in attention,
a sensation difficult to name,
a small transformation—

do not try to capture it completely.

It already happened.

## Final note (optional, but recommended)

If someone insists on asking what you made,
you may answer:

> I did not make a work.
> I allowed something to happen.

## Compression

> It is not about making something,
> but about allowing something to happen
> when it is no longer there.