MATTER - an exhibition

For part of our final submission for Objects and Context, we curated a collaborative exhibition called ‘MATTER’. The exhibition was to reflect the things we had learnt as a result of the unit, and how this may have affected our own personal practices. We wanted to display objects we had found, made and photographs we had taken, and use them to observe peoples behaviour.

Each person from the group brought in an object that related to the Thresholds project. Throughout the unit I have been focusing on the public and private, and how we present ourselves to others in various different ways depending on circumstance. Jewellery is very personal, yet it is portable and public. We enjoy jewellery on many different levels and I thought about how we could potentially use jewellery to tell people a little bit more about ourselves. To explore this idea visually, I have made a series of ‘Welcome’ necklaces; playing with the notion of a welcome mat.

 

This idea evolved into investigating wearable objects that aren’t jewellery, objects such as lanyards, and keys on chains, pens, elastic bands or bobbles. I was especially interested in lanyards, because of their familiar physical connection to a necklace or brooch, yet remaining purely utilitarian. I was interested to acknowledge that unlike most jewellery, which conceals personal memories and information, lanyards broadcast personal information for all to see on an identity card. Having been so interested in the personal and the private throughout the Thresholds project, I felt a lanyard would be the perfect vehicle for me use as my object. I wanted to create my own ID card to go in it. I experimented with a few different ideas, I tried a simple ‘Welcome’ card, similar to the idea of my necklaces above, welcoming others into your life. What will the person wearing the lanyard allow the public to find out?

I also recreated my own version of my University ID card, rather than official information such as identity number, course details or dates, I have written personal information about myself. One version has a description of my journey into my house, the other has a list of things I like.

We chose to include some random acts within the exhibition, we had talked earlier in the unit about ‘thoughtful littering’ and how we find it more acceptable to litter if we do it in a careful, considered way. Something that I always do it fold my crisp packets into triangles, this makes the rubbish seem more controlled and I don’t mind leaving these triangles in places, however I would never just scrunch up an empty bag of crisps and throw it on the floor - but what is the difference?

I found a way to fold train tickets into origami frogs, and we placed these around the exhibition...funnily enough, not a lot of people recognised they were there until we pointed them out.

It was important that our exhibition wasn't stuck in the context of 'being an exhibition', we wanted to observe how people would view and interact with our objects and work. It was decided by the group that the best way to display our objects was simply on the floor inside a border of tape. It was extremely interesting to see how people moved around the objects, respecting the lines the tape made on the floor. Some people stayed on the outside of the box, peering over the boarder to view the objects, some walked through the gaps we had left, wandering carefully through the objects, some stayed on the outside of the tape lines yet leaned over to touch or move the objects. Even when we told certain people that they were allowed to walk through the box, they seemed unsure and very reluctant to do so, afraid they may touch or break one of the objects.

The Objects and Context unit has had a real influence on my own personal practice; it has made me think about objects in a much deeper and more meaningful way. The ‘Thoughtless Acts’ task has taught me to use photography as a way of documentation, treating photographs as a form of note making. I want to use objects as a much more integral part of my work, interrogating why I like about specific objects, and whether there is a running theme that connects each one. All objects have a story, from a hand made silver spoon to a mass produced tea strainer; I want to find out how these objects live together in harmony. The narrative of women’s issues heavily influences my work, I want to investigate how I can use certain objects as a visual language to help people understand and relate to my themes. Looking at practical, domestic, everyday objects and creating a relationship between these objects as aspects of women’s lives. Exploring my new interest in practicality and image.

Here's a list of some of the books that have inspired and influenced my work throughout the unit:

• ·      The Language of Things - Deyan Sudjic
• ·      Purity and Danger: An Analysis of Concepts of Pollution and Taboo - Mary Douglass
• ·      At Home: An Anthropology of Domestic Space (Space, Place & Society) - Irene Cieraad 
• ·      Domestic Cultures (Issues in Cultural and Media Studies) - Joanne Hollows
• ·      Emotional Design: Why We Love (or Hate) Everyday Things - Donald A. Norman
• ·      Non-Places: Introduction to an Anthropology of Supermodernity - Marc Augé