Multi-Narrative Reconstructions
of Modern Egypt
Phantom Map
Mapping signals of absence
The phantom map investigates the relationship of signals between the phantom limb and the body. Through research conducted by a medical institute Fonds de la recherche en santé du Québec, the phenomena result in a sensation within the Spinal cord. A particular portion called the Dorsal Horn is responsible for the transmission of signals within the body. Amputation causes a loss in the inhabiting control of this function which triggers the phantom limb in the cortical map. This triggering implies that there exists a neuroplastic connection between all the parts of the body. The phantom limb results not from the loss of a single limb but a branch of all these connections.
Keywords: neuroplasticity,phantom limb,mapping,spine,laban notation,ways of seeing,networks
Creole Garden
Weaving materials into multiplicities
The Creole garden is a tapestry that utilizes the tactics of Rhizome (Deleuze and Guattari) and the writings of Glissant(Poetics of Relation). The rhizomatic allows for multiple, non-hierarchical entry and exit points of representation and creates the notion of horizontal distribution in opposition to the arborescent, hierarchic tree-like representations found in western thought. The Rhizomatic speaks of multiplicity and hybridity. This contrast creates two different narratives that run on either side which can be read in any direction. It illustrates the diasporic nature of the various materials weaving to create multiplicities.
Keywords: rhizome,arborescence,multiplicity,creolization,tapestry,weaving,loom,ways of seeing,diaspora
Architrave
Using digital space as a means of revealing forces and alternate forms
The term 'architrave' has also been used in academic writing to mean the fundamental part of something(a speech, thought or reasoning), or the basis upon which an idea, reasoning, thought or philosophy is built. Elements such as the architrave can be representations of real-world structures. This translation explores the distortions and simulations that can be revealed and applied to an object without real-world physical constraints. Through creating a digital model, we can simulate and manifest alternative functions and forces acting on these objects.
Keywords: architrave,opposing forces,deconstruction,hierarchies,distortion,digitizing
#jozimycity
Altering perceptions through social media
The video uses clips found on Instagram using the hashtag search function for "Jozi." It investigates the relationship of how media can shape perceptions of space, especially from a distance. The use of combining different pieces of footage also allows multiple views of the same space. It uses a film technique called “Matte Painting”, commonly used across films, series and many other visual media. This technique tracks 3d objects, masks, special effects and other objects into a combined piece of footage. This illusion creates alternate perceptions, meanings and spaces. Social Media's ability to generate "self-curated" documentation of spaces can influence the way we interact with them but also become a tool in revealing and subverting misconceptions. Through tracking and plotting buildings from other locations outside of Johannesburg the scenes talk about the diverse nature of the city's occupants as well the migration of cultures that blend to form new ones.
Keywords: social media,matte painting,perspective,hybridity,multiplicity.motion tracking
The Opticon
Augmenting Hyperrealities
The Opticon functions as an instrument that bridges the realms of physical and digital space through projection augmentation. The advantages of these augmented models offer viewers direct representations and integrations into physical space without the need for specialized head-mounted displays making it immediately visible all viewers. These projected hyper realities can also be streamed and accessed through the internet. The construction of the instrument uses a series of existing projection devices, such as projectors, digital cameras, depth sensors and a planetarium projector. The instrument uses the rhizomatic to trace new lines of flight between the existing functions altering them to create new hybrid functions.
