Project 13: Self Initiated II
(Group Project: Ben Pender, Tom Shearing)
For this self initiated we had the opportunity to work in pairs. We chose the theme of DIY as something we had in common, which the initial intention of using the time to make lots of things we could use for own homes. Realising our project probably needed more depth we set about finding the essence of what makes something 'DIY'. After spending hours making Lego and Airfix planes we came to the conclusion that what makes DIY is entirely in the process. Until you explain to someone that you made something yourself, it might as well be shop bought. No matter how good or bad you are able to make something, at the end of the day it is still a DIY project.
So we set out on a mission to make something that was almost entirely process, where the end result doesn't matter... So we spent 10 hours inside a small box, drawing ideas on A4 paper then disposing of them as soon as we finished. Using the recognisable gesture of scrunching up ideas on paper and discarding them into balls as soon as we finished. The gradual build-up of paper represents the eternal nature of making. The point something is past the stage of creation it is superfluous, and the care and attention it had is never felt for it again. The ruthlessness of this process is something we tried to capture, and by us continuing even when it has engulfed us exaggerates our ignorance of past ideas.
