Drifting through Cityscapes Drifting through Cityscapes MTL final copy | Page 121
How can we create something that has artistic value, without romanticizing
it? How do we emphasize the problem in an artistic way, without gloryfying
it? After many hours of dead-ends, and ideas that led nowhere, we even-
tually found a way. Since we wanted to have a subtle grotesque element
throughout the work, the process had to be a bit grotesque (if not gross) as
well. So here’s what we did: We went to different locations in Belgrade and
we collected… well, trash. We picked garbage directly from the ground
and, as disgusting of a process as it was, it helped us get in the right men-
tal state for the project. The very feeling of repulsion is what helped us in
the next stage. We had another problem to solve. We realized we had
to make the documentation as direct as possible. Simply taking photos of
the objects was out of question. We wanted the process to be even more
direct than that. We opted for scanning. Believe it or not, it can’t get any
more hands-on than that! All that squashing, leaking, dripping, breaking
and deformation that happerns when you press a three-dimensional ob-
ject between two sides of the scanner gave us exactly what we wanted.
Having all the objects scanned, we aquired a great digital data base to
work with. What was left to be done was the »product« design. That’s when
we realised we had no idea what product would be the most effective in
conveying the message we wanted to send. We knew that the final prod-
uct had to have some comercial value, as a means to underline the prob-
lem of consumerism as an important factor in neglecting enviromental is-
sues. It also had to be pretty mundane, in a way that makes is usable as
well as »relatable«. But, before any of that, it had to be designed in a very
particular way. We wanted it to be completely „innocent looking» from
afar, but as you get closer and closer, the realisation hits. What seemed
like an interesting pattern a moment ago, now looks like an asembly of
the most disgusting things one can find. Dirty boxes, used wipes, straws
and sanitary pads, food gone bad, half finished cigarettes… So we started
thinking about those patterns. What are patterns used for? What products
are dependent on good pattern design? What products allow both – far
away and close up inspection? Then it dawned on us: wallpapers! Wall, as
an immovable object, directs the attention of the observer just the way we
wanted. Upon entering the room, person glances at
walls, grasping the general look, but not the details.
At some point, inevidably, person gets closer to