My project is centred around our sentimental relationship with objects. I researched collections and why we hold onto things as a way of remembering things, and how they form a physical reflection of our identity. I found that we have a need to keep a memento to remind us of experiences that are less tangible, like a journey, but often there isn’t a sufficient keepsake. My project helps to make a personal souvenir that is specific to the individual’s experience.
My final outcome is a collector’s wearable. It is designed for the avid collector who goes on trips out of a love of collecting ephemera. Instead of buying a token postcard as a souvenir of their day, they carry all the equipment need to make their own site-specific ‘postcards’ made of the tickets, leaflets, maps etc. they have collected throughout the day. The wearable is made up of a half-gilet which holds valuables in an inside pocket and has pockets for the deckle, and for tickets, maps and collected paper. The other component is a bag which has pouches for the paper press and pulping jar, and an accordion pocket for the finished postcards. By taking the collected papers and transforming them into something new, the memories of the experience are processed along with the paper.
How can we gather, store and collect a personal keepsake from an intangible experience?