CONVERSATIONS WITH ALDERSHOT - 2
The online component of this exhibition was designed by developing the experience gained in Conversations with Aldershot -1; World Building, using the Spoke programme in conjunction with Mozilla hubs. The objective was to see if it would be possible to enhance accessibility to the exhibition by running the online and irl events at the same time. The online event space was built with the majority of the works as unique assets, making them permanent fixtures viewable by anyone entering the space at any time. In this way the work takes on a new life as an archive - distinctive in the sense that it remains a faithful replication of the physical space long after the work is taken down
Conversations with Aldershot is a multiphase project concerned with collecting the stories and experiences of local people throughout the pandemic and beyond. Susan Merrick, associate artist at the West End Centre, and Candice Camacho, the project's community facilitator, worked with a group of local women throughout 2021 to reflect on their experience of the lockdowns and to create work to share with their local community. More widely, the group has also been collecting a variety of stories, thoughts and experiences of lockdown from Aldershot residents and will continue to do this into 2022 with the aim of producing a publication of these experiences as an archive for the town.
Created using Spoke - 2021
CONVERSATIONS WITH ALDERSHOT - 1
Conversations with Aldershot is an ongoing project documenting the lockdown stories of the residents of Aldershot in Hampshire.
This digital, ‘world making’ off-shoot of the main project explores the possibilities for enhanced inclusion through the flexibility offered by technological advances such as virtual social spaces and augmented reality. What are the barriers to engagement and participation when it comes to social art? How does our environment and our perception of ourselves influence how comfortable we feel getting involved in a project? As COVID has made digital interaction inescapable, how might we use this new-found control over ‘reality’ to our advantage?
Images featured are from a test space created to consider how the use of a constructed environment and avatars might impact people’s feelings of confidence and belonging. The documented session was an artists talk where participants- emerging and established artists - came together to talk about their work in advance of a potential roll out to community participants.
Created using Spoke - 2020