The blog I created is a representation of New Year’s Eve. These were my most memorable days and took place in Gisborne and Coromandel. Over the years it has become my favourite day of the year. I often attempt to conceal the memories somewhere in order to relive them through the year and remind/re-enact a memory from this time. This relates to Jose Van Dijck’s theory of memory being embodied, enabled and embedded.
My blog represents the embodiment of the memory through the way it shows moments where I thought that it was going to make a great memory. In the photo of the fireworks, I recall saying to my friend that I would never forget how much I enjoyed watching them. Also, when we lit sparklers I took a step back from the moment to take in what was happening and formed a memory. After only one year my recollection of this has become distant and not so clear. It takes me seeing an object, such as a sparkler or a photo of them to ‘flashback’ to that time.
Memory of this occasion is enabled through media like photographs. I keep archives of as many photos’ I can find of the occasion or objects that relate to that time; the smell of a barbeque, a sparkler being lit, the taste of kiwi fruit, the perfume I wore, the particular music we listened to a that time. At times I cannot even listen to songs such as Electric Dream by Shapeshifter (the music video at the start of my blog), as it reminds me so much of summer and New Year’s Eve that I begin to feel a longing for it. All of these senses or objects when put together allow me to keep a version of what happened over these days. I can relive a snippet of my experience through these mediated memory objects.
Due to this memory being one that happened within a group, it is a collective memory. Without the social input of information to my brain, it would be possible for these memories to dissapear forever. With a collective memory though, even if I completely forget the New Years events I may come accross a friends photo's or the organisation advertising events again.
