The subject matter of my project are my childhood memories and the difference in experiencing them due to age. How I plan to investigate this is by understanding that childhood memories are hallowed but they were created in a completely different mind. As a friend to a children’s psychologist, I’ve learnt in the past that before conversation and vocabulary reaches its peak, children operate in an alternate existence where their reality is constructed purely of emotions rather than a constructed realm of words and concepts. I’d like to try and recreate the difference in that through my project.
Children are endlessly fascinating to me because of their functioning through a completely different social structure. It would be personally very interesting for me (and I think to my audience, as everyone was a child once and relatable art is the best art most often.) to try and see my struggle in slipping back into that old structure and mindset.
I haven’t got any sketches yet as I’m still thinking about ways to join children… this means having to perhaps ask ballet/art studios if they permit my joining baby classes as a student, playing with children in a playground (is that even legal for me?), etc. I plan to interview my friend James Rushbrooke for insight into children and how to plan my “attack”; James is a professional trainer and consultant (“kidsultant”) who works primarily with children and is specialised around communication skills. He uses his expertise with children and the way they behave into educating others as a child advocate, and frequently travels around England to lead workshops with local authorities to better educate on working with children.
I looked at the list of Open Works and so far the one I’ve related to the most is Dylan Chandler. The collection of intimate things, regenerated over and over again, stopped to give a glimpse and trying to connect with the viewer in some way. It’s very addictive.
This is a fascinating but difficult topic!
I like the fact that you are already thinking of ways to connect with people that have some expertise and also with the subject (the kids).
I think getting access to kids is going to be very difficult, but I’m sure you an find a way. Is there a particular age you are looking to focus on?
looking at the idea of how memory is depicted over time and how it reflects different developmental stages is some terrain that may be difficult to research (at least in terms of examples of creative projects). probably some of the best points of reference will actually be in different kinds of fiction that explore very specific narrative points of view like:
William Faulkner’s the Sound and the Fury
Gertrude Stein
James Joyce
You may want to see if Oliver Sacks wrote about this topic at all.
In Film, the Diving Bell and the Butterfly is a good example of a very defined point of view. The films of Luis Bunuel seem to suggest some altered way of understanding the world that could tie into memory (like the Discrete Charm of the Bourgouisie) The movie Leviathan does an amazing job at framing an entire movie that captures the violence and unpredictability of the sea.
So the BIG question here:
Wat will it be? What will this project become? Right now you have the kernel of an idea (and one that will take some work to open up) but you need to begin to think af a form so the idea and its ultimate form can begin to communicate.
Finally, you will want to affirm that this project is about time rather than only about memory (which can veer into all kinds of other associations like nostalgia) how does the project draw the connection between this look at memory and the experience of time?