Objects Of My Mother

A video filmed with a mobile phone – running time: 1min06

This artefact exists as a digital short video, as an audiovisual artefact.

The impulse for this video came from the Absurd Questionnaire:

‘Proximity-Distance’ 

After the reflection in the group, the artist researcher had the feeling that he would like to make another video describing his mother for the whole group.

The impulse was now self-chosen:

‘Describe your mother for the other Artist Researchers in the group.’

The video shows objects in the artist researcher’s home that are either from his mother or that he and his mother both have.

The video questions the location, positioning and place of these objects in the physical and metaphysical space of their mother-child relationship. Through the active interaction of both the camera movement and the movement of the objects by the artist researcher, as well as the production of sounds, the artist researcher explores, questions, criticises, develops a visual autosociobiographical exploration.

Furniture, plants, pots, items of clothing and jewelry become visible. The camera is close, follows the objects, different surfaces are explored in detail. The sound level suggests a cross-reading of the visible. The artist research taps on the objects, closes shops, scratches along the surface. Through the unconventional confrontation with the objects, we are invited to search for the story behind the objects. In the search, we enter with our own experiences and cultural codes and reveal not only the foreign, but also our own sociobiography.

Which objects do I associate with my mother?

What emotions do they trigger in me?

How long have I owned these objects?

What objects of mine does my mother own?

How did these objects come to me?

Do these objects belong to me?

How do I film these objects? In what order do I visualise them? How close am I to these objects? Is everything I am looking at in focus?

Do I know the history of all the objects? What happened to these objects before me?

What history do I read into these objects?

Is there an object that is particularly important to me? Why?