Re-Collect
by Charles Richter O'Connell
The mind has the choice to ponder the past, present or future. While the present and future are spontaneous, unpredictable and filled with decision making, this project will be focused on the past and how memories stay or fade. The past holds history, reflects reasoning, exerts influence and induces nostalgia. No matter how hard you’d like to recall a memory, there is always a loss of some small details. How did the sky look, who were you with, what season it was, or what sounds filled the air while this memory took place? This piece is a recollection and gathering of information to try to reconstruct memories of where I’ve come from. The piece is designed to be anonymous to some degree, so that each person interacting with it will not be forced into my memory but actually have the ability to plant themselves into the scene.
My past has been separated into three cities along the coast of Lake Michigan. To relate my experiences of each location i’ve split up a performance into three sections that float through the landscapes visually and sonically. The piece stays anonymous in the way that landscapes and soundscapes hold different meanings to each set of eyes and ears.
Physically the project consists of a translucent screen onto which are projected images from specific locations, edited to give the effect of a faded remembrance. Sound and instrumentation is an aesthetic choice to break the silence of memories and to represent how I felt in that moment of time. The screen being translucent will allow a view of human activity performing the re-enactment . This experiment of recalling and recreating my memories tells a story of comfort with family, growing up with friends, getting in trouble and learning from those experiences. To the viewer, grasp on to something visceral and explore your thoughts from a period before the present.
Special thanks to Ellis O’Connell, Cooper O’Connell, and Brandon Quam for being involved with the project.
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