Having conducted research into several relevant works and conducted various experiments, I arranged the work in my room as I would arrange it in a gallery space. I considered the knowledge I had gained from research into technical, aesthetic and conceptual elements when setting the work up, as well as through the idea’s conception.
Having thought about the nexus of archaeology and art and deciding not to try to impose any information about the lovers onto an audience, I haven’t been explicit in any of my beliefs about the letters, only emphasising the meaning of what I believe to be the last letter by looping it on tape. Life Without Buildings’ repetitive pastiches of anonymous love allowed me to understand that a feeling can be emitted and strengthened without the divulging of information through the repetition of words and phrases. I had considered looping the full content of the letters; however, in researching Life Without Buildings, the short emphasis of a particular phrase could create more of an affective response and aesthetically, I find longer tape loops that exist outside of their casing to be distracting, and I wanted to make an aesthetically simple work to emphasise the emotions embodied by the artefact.
My work captures the secretive elements of the letters candidly through its simplicity and through the authenticity of the item being shown, whilst still maintaining a vague anonymity of its subjects, which I think walks the ethical boundary of privacy that arises when artists are in search of presenting the truth in a sensitive way. I haven’t searched for the individuals or tried to get to the root of the story as Sophie Calle may have done, yet I have still maintained the truth, by showing the notes to the audience, they will hopefully gain a shared understanding of how the notes feel true due to their aesthetic qualities and hopefully this truth will allow and audience to have an affective response, emphasising the realness of the characters. In considering how to present a secret, I thought about not showing the notes at all, only showing the note I have looped or showing the notes but setting them high up on a wall so they are illegible. The reason I decided to show the letters in full as opposed to hiding them from the audience is to show the material truth of the notes as well as the fact that none of the names in the letters are full names, which helps maintain anonymity. I think showing the audience how true the notes feel will provide a more intimate experience for them.
I have found it interesting exploring the world of personal artefacts. I think I will keep this as part of my practice. I have enjoyed responding to an object, trying to find a simple and sensitive way of doing so. In the future, I will respond to different items I find with the sensitivity around the preservation of secrets I have gained from this experience.