The Resonant Memories project will tackle the digital divide between younger and older generations in Serbia. We aim to bridge the generational experience gap by co-creating with the elderly tangible and interactive representations of their memories. The final artistic artifacts will materialize these memories, through haptic feedback embedded into artistic textile forms and symbolic objects. They will also have an audio component, a sonification of memories.
©Dhanushka Gunathilake
©Dhanushka Gunathilake
©Dhanushka Gunathilake
The collection of co-designed artifacts will be carefully curated to create an experience room, where visitors can feel and touch the memories of the elderly. The sensorial immersion into memories is meant to serve as a bridge for the younger generations to develop empathy and shorten the generational gap.
Memories make who we are. They form our present, trigger action, and help us survive. They are also a powerful mechanism for change. This may only happen if we share our memories and create the “empathy bridge” to someone else’s reality. In the Resonant Memories residency, we aim to build a bridge between the realms of older generations and younger ones. We hope to address and mitigate the digital divide between these generations. To make this bridge stronger, we will diverge from vision and turn towards touch and hearing, as these senses facilitate a more intimate connection.
Yulia Sion, Nuno N. Correia & Clopy Diaz Reyes
Jury Statement
Resonant Memories has the biggest potential in transferring the complex topic of digital exclusion of elders into an artistic experience, where the perception, thoughts, and emotions of elders can cause a shared, disturbed, and uneasy feeling of collective responsibility and ownership. With the foreseen involvement and active participation of the group of seniors across Serbia, there is strong possibility that their position and representation within the digital realm will be adequately assessed, reviewed, and hopefully improved. The team consisting of Clopy Diaz Reyes, Yulia Sion, and Nuno Correia offered a strong perspective, supported by their existing practices, proven record of interdisciplinary research, and openness for learning, collaboration, and active exchanges throughout the process. The jury is certain that the resulting project will make a significant impact on the focal community in Serbia, as well as in other locations where the project will be presented.
The Center for the Promotion of Science
Yulia Sion (EE)
Yulia is a Researcher at Tallinn University with a focus on mediated touch, wearable technology, and generative design methods. She explores novel ways of representing memories through haptics.
Nuno N. Correia (EE)
Nuno is an Associate Professor at Tallinn University and a media artist. Since the 2000’s, his research and art have focused on multisensory experiences, sound design, creativity support, and embodied interaction.
Clopy Diaz Reyes (EE)
Clopy is a textile artist who explores memories through metaphors that form to embed sensorial memories into textures. She merges tradition and technology with creativity to push the boundaries of design.