As part of the task set in our introduction session, we were encouraged to reflect on artefacts and cultural memory. I found this topic really fascinating and is not something I have ever thought about exploring before. I realised that my brain does naturally associate certain specific soundscapes with some artefacts, especially when there is sentiment attached to it.
An example that immediately jumped into my mind was an object I have kept in my bedroom for many years, having moved with me from house to house. A little pot of sand, that I kept from a local beach when we moved away from a little seaside town I had spent the majority of my childhood playing on. I started to think about the sounds associated, the sounds of waves lapping on the shore, kids playing tag on the beach, the sound of sailboat masts chiming in the wind. I feel that thinking about sound is a really effective way to tap into memories, as soon as I started thinking about sound, all my other senses like touch and visual immediately started to kick in.
I felt really inspired by this and would love to explore this idea of artefact memory and the soundscapes that they can create. It made me think of a possible exhibition idea, one where people come in and are allowed to explore a stranger’s ‘memory box’ as a specific soundscape plays. I think it is a really interesting way to explore identity.
PCA Isobel Wilkinson - BA Film 