The Curiosity Box

After collecting items from the beach at Falmouth I created a series of tool like objects that weren't made with any specific function in mind but the idea of provoking responses from people according to the shape and form of the objects. I enjoyed this method of making from scraps of natural/ man made objects because I didn't have to think about it too much- all I was trying to achieve was making something that was aesthetically pleasing in order to provoke an interesting response.

The objects that I like the best are the ones which are quite simple for example this corn cob tied together with wire and old rope. I like how the object is a combination of man made and natural materials because  it creates a variety of textures and colours such as the artificial bright blue colour of the string and its spiky texture, compared to the corn cob's dulled down mustard colouring and nobbled feel. To make the objects relevant to my project I decided to put them in to a context in which they would be put to use in some way.

Today I started filming people interacting with my objects. I chose a remote hallway in college with white walls as not to distract away from the experiment. I then stored all my objects in a small white box so that people could not see the objects before I started filming and plan how they would use them. The only instructions I gave to people were that they had to open the box, pick as as many objects as they wanted, interact with them for as long as they wanted, then put them back in the box and shut the door. I also said to them try not to get embarrassed or talk because the main focus is on the movement you create with the objects.

I think the films from today were much more successful than those of the fork experiment where people had to try and pick up as many peas as they can because it wasn't so so specific. The experiment let the participant be as free as they wanted in terms of which part of the body they used, if they used the area around them and also how they used them. In other words the purpose of the experiment was very black and it was left to the participants willingness to get involved and their imagination to make it as interesting as they wanted. This was one of the reasons I was unsure as to whether the experiment would work or not. I thought people might become too embarrassed, run out of ideas or conscious of the fact that they were being watched and may not fully embrace the experiment. In some cases this did happen and the number of objects they picked up was in some cases as small as one. In others people became very expressive and did things such as attaching objects to the hair or body, jump up and down, or make sound with objects by hitting the box.

Speaking of sound, quite a lot of people liked using the objects in a way that produced sound for example hitting the box, knocking together parts of the objects or rustling them with their fingers. The sound was also quite ambient in the space that I chose and echoed around the halls which I thought created an atmosphere. One of my instructions I gave to the participants was not to talk so that the focus was on the movements but what I found was that sometimes speech can be as valuable as movement. When picking up an object Pip started nocking parts of it together (like two conkers on a string) and said how she used to "play the spoons" when she was little. She responded in this way because the object had a similar form to that of a pair of 'spoons'. I thought this was interesting because it shows how memory can become part of peoples response to the shape and form of objects.

In response to these films I will examine what aspects of the objects pleased people for example which shapes or materials they responded to the most. I could then use this information to inform further making of abstract objects that aren't necessarily used for something but instead attract peoples attention through aesthetic qualities. I could also try and collect scraps of materials from another context e.g. college or around Camberwell in which I live. I also need to think about the way I will present the objects for the exhibition. I have decided that instead of creating one final piece for the exhibition I will display my objects, films and research as a collection. I have been thinking about presenting my objects in a way that is still interactive for example in a cabinet or shelf that people can open or pick up the objects. In order for this to work I nee to make sure the object are not stolen or broken which is why the use of some written instructions might be useful.

Before going away I was worried that my project research was fitting together to well and was too thought out so overall I think these curiosity objects made from beach scraps have been successful in adding another pathway to my project. Also I think they have overcome some of the problems I had when using my forks such as people being too familiar with the function of a fork and in result were not as experimental as they could have been.