Traces with Origin
2013/14
Traces with Origin imagines a parallel universe in which 200 years ago, around 1800 when electricity was being discovered and the first electronic devices were being invented, communities made a point of developing their own electronics. Such local electronics relied on regional resources and production methods, and their design and function were strongly influenced by cultural tradition and ritual. As cultural goods, the electronic devices in this parallel universe often have quaint functionality or no utilitarian function at all, much unlike the deices we find ourselves surrounded by.
Subnet Residency
During an artist-in-residency at Subnet in Salzburg/Austria I would like to explore how regional materials, traditions and crafts could have affected and even now could still inspire regional electronics. I would like to to produce a series of functional electronic artifacts as a means of demonstrating an imaginary shift from global to regional within the electronic crafts and traditions. With this project I not only want to look at the integration of electronics and craft on a material and process level, but also explore the influences of locality on the design and functionality of the things we build.
What kinds of devices would have been conceived and handcrafted in Lungau? What materials would have been used to make electronics in Salzburg Stadt? What gadgets might have arisen from regions such as Pinzgau and Flachgau? What influence could regional, traditional and cultural heritage have on the development of electronic technology today?
This work will be realized as part of a Subnet Artist-in-Residency in Salzburg, Austria
If you are a craftsperson based in Salzburg/area and interested in getting involved with this project (no matter what your trade!), please contact me via email: hannah@plusea.at
