Description
Recollect is a body of work that exhibits the valuable yet fragile nature of autobiographical memory. Memory assists in constructing individual identity by allowing us to recall moments from our past in relationship with, and in contrast to, acquired knowledge and recent experience. However, memory is transient and is easily manipulated, reconstructed, and altered which leads us to question its reliability to represent an accurate account. Recollect is comprised of four collections of jewelry pieces each which embodies various physiological aspects of memory as well as sentiment from the artist's personal memories. The collections of jewelry; Recollect: A Collection of Pendants, Fragment: Three Pendants, Elicit: 21 Brooches, and Account: Three sets of two dual necklaces, are all comprised of wearable jewelry pieces constructed primarily out of metal with the inclusion of other materials such as found wood, thread, and yarn. The concept is realized through the format of jewelry for its distinct and intimate relationship with the body. The pieces are intended to be worn and carried on the body; the pendants, at a length where they can be clasped in the hands to be admired and contemplated. The sensation of touch can often be a trigger of memory. Each piece serves as a souvenir, or a physical representation of an intangible moment from the past that one longs to preserve and keep close to them. Additionally, choosing to adorn the body with jewelry is an expression of identity, the very identity formulated by moments that comprise the past. The work is displayed in an installation style format hanging on the walls of the gallery. The grouping of pieces in each collection is presented together in an arrangement, strengthening the suggested characteristics of memory (for example, its ephemeral nature, neurological connectivity, fragmentation, deterioration, distortion, and reconstruction). The body of work was exhibited at the San Diego State University Gallery from April 6 to April 18, 2013 and images of this thesis project are on file in the school of Art, Design, and Art History
