Memory Distillation
Research
This project was based on the project called 'Transformer-Media in Disguise' which was one of the final year project when I was in LCC. I tried to disguise 3D element rather than 2D media in this project because I thought graphic and media is not just on flat screen anymore.
'Railway trains only begin to exist when they are derailed, and the more passengers that are killed, the more the trains exist.' - George Perec
From the quote above that I found while I wrote dissertation, I decided to deconstruct, remove and finally hack the original value of everyday object.
This short film below is called 'Trans-function'. I hacked and transformed the value of 3 little everyday objects.
'I don't think that just doing something with a thing that was not designed or made to that function is sufficient. An example of this would be using an upturned bucket as a stool. The change of function is obvious and direct. The bucket always has a sitting potential without adaption. But if you change the bucket to a lamp shade you have given it a new potential. You can then see that orange plastic has a good quality when light shines through it. I mention this as changing a bucket in this way is a project by Michael Marriott.' - Advice from Tutor
However, I had a tutorial with tutor and I realized objects in 'Trans-function' only changed the use of its function but it's not fully being removed and reborn as new. It had to be obtuse or counter to the original use. So I experimented again with clock showing the time. This time, I used hands of the clock to stir an english tea.
Suddenly, my friend who lived in brighton called me and said she had her bag stolen during moving out. She put her bag which included her most precious things like laptop, camera, memory stick and wallet in front of the door just a moment. And for some reason it disappeared. She thought someone stole it so she called a police but finally couldn't find it.
One interesting thing she said to me on the phone was that of course she was upset about the loss of material value of her goods but losing all of her important data were more upset her. Photography of her work, document and contact number etc, all memories were suddenly disappeared.
From this conversation, I rethought about real value and function of object. Actually, every object has a function that saves people's memory and it affects when they set its value. Like my friend said Not just change clock to cuppa I wanted to change the form of function.
Then I've asked people what their precious object is.
To be continue...