| Kammer 21C installation at Starline Gallery in Harvard, IL, Aug 8-9, 2008 |
Kammer 21C Statement:
At the turn of the 17th century, cabinets of curiosities were the
rage in Europe. Curators of these wunderkammern lacked
standardized systems of classification and instead developed
imaginative ways to explain the significance of their bizarre
acquisitions. As interpretive exhibits, the collections were often
mystifying, if not marvelous to contemplate.
Kammer 21C is a 21st-century adaptation of the wunderkammer
in the sense that it favors personal meaning over academic
quantification as a method of interpretation. But rather than
collect exotic physical specimens and artifacts, K21C
participants captured digital images and sounds from local
sources, including field trips, interviews and found objects, as
well as contributions from other groups in Blue Sky Project.
They then arranged their data according to personal
significance. Nostalgia, abstraction, poetic expression, and
communal lore influenced this creative process. They shared
media files to develop meaningful contexts between otherwise
loosely related sounds and images. The result is an interpretive
display that instills a sense of wonder with a familiar place.
At the turn of the 17th century, cabinets of curiosities were the
rage in Europe. Curators of these wunderkammern lacked
standardized systems of classification and instead developed
imaginative ways to explain the significance of their bizarre
acquisitions. As interpretive exhibits, the collections were often
mystifying, if not marvelous to contemplate.
Kammer 21C is a 21st-century adaptation of the wunderkammer
in the sense that it favors personal meaning over academic
quantification as a method of interpretation. But rather than
collect exotic physical specimens and artifacts, K21C
participants captured digital images and sounds from local
sources, including field trips, interviews and found objects, as
well as contributions from other groups in Blue Sky Project.
They then arranged their data according to personal
significance. Nostalgia, abstraction, poetic expression, and
communal lore influenced this creative process. They shared
media files to develop meaningful contexts between otherwise
loosely related sounds and images. The result is an interpretive
display that instills a sense of wonder with a familiar place.
- - -
photos by Mequitta Ahuja
Chicago in July 2008:
Chicago in December 2008...
ABQ & LA in April 2009...
excerpts from K21C:
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