2011
found Objects, electronics
Dingliebe
I collect discarded objects while walking through the city. With minimal electronic circuits I make these objects sound. I have been inspired by the text Supernatural Apparitions and Domestic Life in Japan by Kazuhiko Komatsu.There he describes the concept of Ushirometasa.
Although it has largely been forgotten since disposability became the order of the day, the Japanese once had a different attitude toward their household goods. They felt guilty about throwing things away, especially utensils made by human hands. The word used for these guilt feelings, ushirometasa, literally means feeling someone’s gaze behind one’s back. One has done something improper; anyone secretly watching would surely disapprove. The gaze implied by ushirometasa includes that of fellow humans, but traditionally it carried stronger connotations of the gaze of a divine spirit. When a utensil is discarded, the agent of the gaze is the spirit of the utensil itself.

Dingliebe Audio installation in the forge of the “Deutsches Technikmuseum” in Berlin during the “Lange Nacht der Museen” event on 27 August 2011. Pieces of coal are connected to oscillators.




