Emily King
Why do we communicate? Why do we not communicate? Who do we choose to communicate with? Who do we not? How does a situation affect the amount of communication? How do we communicate? Do we want to communicate?
I went to the train station recently and from viewing the people, with this communication idea in mind, I thought this was a perfect example of a location where people choose not to communicate with each other, even though it would be very easy to do so. From my own experience I enjoy plugging in my music and zoning out, as I travel from A to B and I can see this was also a common feeling.
When do people choose to communicate?/ feel the need to communicate?
Seeing someone hurt or in pain. Most people would go up to a stranger to help or just check they are alright.
When people are all in the exact same situation that has brought them together to have something in common but feel that awkward silence. I experienced this the other day, I could see others across the room making an effort to talk so I felt that awkward silence slowly growing and then suddenly released when I started the conversation. Interesting also what goes on in the mind at the moment, What do I say?How do I make a good impression? What could we all have in common?
Then thinking about the build up to starting a conversation with people you don’t know, it makes it very clear why people may choose not to communicate at all. It is so easy to just stay inside your own head.
Taking the idea further of thinking about people feeling uncomfortable, makes me think of the sense of feeling secure and what situation/feeling/memory jog/location someone might have to be in to get this sense of being secure and protected?
What I link to feeling secure:
- Home
- Family
- Warmth
- Blanket
- Love
- support
- Acceptance
Security definition:- the state of being free from danger or threat.
But this made me think, what if you are in a state where you are vulnerable to danger or threats and don’t have a secure place to be? What do you then feel?
If you weren’t in a secure location would that affect the amount of human interaction?
How do people without a home feel? Do they have a sense of security even though most of them have none of the above reasons to feel secure? Do they feel safe in their sleeping bags?
Interest 2:
What is it that makes you feel intimate with someone else?
Knowing the person?
- I believe that you need to know the person you are up close and personal with to actually feel the intimacy with. There is a fine line between feeling intimate and just awkward.
Sharing warmth? Closeness of their presents?
- Being close up to someone so that the body heat of the other person is passed on.
- In a confined area can really make me feel intimate with someone. The smaller the area the more intimate it becomes as you are closer together.
Acceptance? Safety?
- Not love and affection, just acceptance and the feeling of being accepted. It gives you a happy and warm feeling inside and could be a form of intimacy.
- Intimacy with a feeling or object rather than another human. Being in a safe environment, feeling cosy and protected.
What emotions are involved with being intimate?
- Uncomfortable
- Passion
- Awkward
- Affection
- Discomfort
- Warmth
- Pressure
- Closeness
- Pain
- Happy
- Scared
Interest 3:
Decay
Decay definition – (of organic matter) rot or decompose through the action of bacteria and fungi.
- Process of creation
How mold is scientifically grown on breaking down food. What reaction takes place for this to happen.
- Form
The changing form of mold when it slowly grows and how it takes over of the food as it decays and breaks down.
- Function
Why does mold grow? What is it’s few main functions?
- Colours and textures
The beautiful colours and textures created with the break down of different foods and how those might change as the mold develops.
Human Decay definition – Active decay is the stage after death in which a cadaver loses the majority of its body mass. Fluids released through orifices indicate that it has started. Organs, muscles, and skin become liquefied. When all of the body’s soft tissue decomposes, hair, bones, cartilage, and other byproducts of decay remain.
Physical Decay: Also could be seen as getting older and the body is deteriorating and you can watch it happen eg: wrinkles, grey hairs, slowing down in movement, tiredness.
Hidden decay – Mental illness/ deterioration, health problems, pills to keep you going.
Contextual references:
Research into the psychological reasons why people communicate and what situation they choose to be in to communicate. Could it link to security? Do they possibly not trust the person they are talking to? Could starting up a conversation cause risks on that person?
I was at the train station the other day and was interested to look around and see how this was somewhere where people were coming together with the same purpose but choosing not to communicate and interact. I stood there for a bit watching the people and then continued to watch their behaviour when I got onto the train. Everyone was happy to completely isolate themselves from others.
This then made me think, why do hikers and cyclists in the countryside always smile and say hello? They also have the same aim as commuters (getting from A to B) but people wouldn’t ever choose to stop to smile, say hello and possibly ask where they are off to in the city.
Could the city be a place where people don’t feel secure and the countryside they do more? Why could this be?
I took photographs of the train station platform to try and see what could be stopping people from interacting with each other. People were standing a good distance away from each other which makes a conversation not thought about. What makes people not want to interact?
I then decided to do a quick questionnaire at rush hour and asked the working men in suits (because they were the most common type of person I was seeing) how they felt about the situation with communication in the train station. Did they want to communicate with others? What did they do with their daily commutes to and from work?
Statistics on who travels most by train daily?
From further research later on it came clear that the reason I was seeing so many men in suits at rush hour linked to the statistics I found. This chart shows that a much higher percentage of men commute daily than women.
Designers who have created inventions to discourage communication and interaction with others to make themselves feel more protected and distant from others when they want to be.
The hand held fan was invented in Japan. I was designed to go with womens outfits. They would express different feelings and expressions using the fan and each gesture would mean something different. The rich woman would have different ones for each day to match their outfits.
“The Isolator” – A helmet invented in 1925 by Hugo Gernsback. Designed to improve work productivity. The idea was that when you put it on it would cut out everything in your surroundings. All you could see was the paper in front of you and all sound would be blocked out. There was an oxygen tank attached to give you air.
I found this interesting because of the fact it is enhancing your concentration for work at the same time as cutting everyone out so that communication with others doesn’t have to happen.
Kunihiko Morinaga – The designer who invented the concentration ‘blinders’ in 2018. The purpose of these are to channel your vision when in an open office to help you to not see what is going on around you.
This modern invention which seems to be inspired by “The Isolator” but would be easier to maneuver and wear in the office. It cuts people out from your vision meaning that less conversations are made as well as better concentration.
Ivan Sutherland – The first virtual reality headset was created in 1968 by American computer scientist Ivan Sutherland and his student, Bob Sproull.
William Kent – Invented the pram in 1733 – Used to protect children from weather conditions or protect them when needing sleep. Blocks out the world when needed.
New Inventions of add ons to your pram to make them extra protenting for your child and give them even more privacy. The modern day pram has been modified to make it the comfiest version of itself. It needs to make the baby feel secure and protected otherwise it wouldn’t be serving its purpose.
For my FMP, I have taken inspiration from a past project of mine, where I created a hood for commuters. This was so they could get their work done in privacy and have full concentration on their journey to and from work.
I used thin fabric and wire which I thought worked really well because I wanted to make the hood something that could easily be folded up and transported from one location to another.
On the course so far I feel I have learnt a lot of different techniques. Some I would like to pursue could be sewing or working in the 3D workshop to create the best final outcome possible.
FMP Blog-EK 