Curating an exhibition in terms of organizing data using categories suchas location and time, S(h)elf Identity explores the nostalgic value of objects in the form of gifts from whom they are connected, to the memories connected to them. This exhibition is a collection of myself in an interactive format, showcasing the things I am interested in.
The cubes in the shelf can be clicked to reveal hidden categories, in which each object can also be clicked, taking the viewer to a more in-depth look at the items on display. Created using Adobe XD I
In this week’s task, I explore the nostalgic memories associated with my possessions.
When replacing my 13 objects I decided to go down a slightly different route to my previous submissions. Prior to week 3, I had created publications exploring memories in the form of gifts. However this time I surveyed these memories in a different way with a connection to music through my CD and album collection. Music collecting is a big hobby of mine as I enjoy looking at album cover designs which helped draw me into the world of graphic design. As an aspiring designer, I only collect albums/CDs that display a good relationship between aesthetic + music. Most of these albums were also gifted to me, through friends and coursemates. These albums are displayed in cube boxes on a shelf in my bedroom and therefore provided me with a perfect place for me to hold an exhibition. If I were to restart this project from week 1, I would have picked objects solely from my album collection, as this way I could have created a more specific and meaningful exhibition.
Theme: Self Identity
experimenting with idea layouts
Organisation
Interactive timeline wireframes
Outcomes: S(h)elf Identity
Using TIME, HIREACHY and CATEGORY, my digital exhibition features an interactive timeline that displays each object individually & chronologically. Each object has been grouped into suitable categories to show where they would be displayed by subject on my shelf at home.
I have realised that it may have been more suitable to exhibit my objects in a style linking to bothmusic and memories, such as using sound or lyrics to capture the ‘essence’ of each object or by documenting the objects visually using music paper etc. I would have also liked to explore the friends and family members in more detail like I did last week to give a stronger connection to the value of gifts. For better organisation, I wish I had used a spreedsheet when sorting through my objects.
After completing this week’s task, I also came across an app which lets users create their own digital exhibitions 🙂 You can view exhibitions made on this app through your smartphones or web browser! I really recommend browsing other creator’s work. I had a lot of fun myself as it’s very realistic, relaxing and easy to navigate. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.exhibbit.exhibbitmobile&hl=en_GB
Originally I had the idea of producing an interactive catalogue.
This consisted of 3 types of the same object (in my case 3 hand sanitizers, one for each family member) and comparing their qualities or ‘translations’ against each other. I wanted to create an interactive catalogue in the form of a personal user interface, letting my audience choose between the different sizes, scents, colours, costs etc. This would have been a suitable format because it would let my audience compare between the objects, letting them find their most suitable match.
As you can see by the length of my thumbnail sketches below, ultimately comparing 12 separate categories across 3 different objects in a simple user-friendly way was confusing both functionally and visually. I had a creative block on this idea and ended up having to move onto producing a more simple catalogue last minute.
My new catalogue focuses on the memories of the objects and the narratives behind the people in my family who gifted me those objects:
