AbstractsPolitical Science

My degree project consists of several parts: a theorethical essay, sketches, modells, photos, experiments and an installation showed at Konstfack Spring Exhibition 2014. Departing from the infamous Fredric Jameson quote ”It’s easier to imagine the end of the world than the end of capitalism” I have investigated the relationship between play, daydreaming and economical system. Political scientist Wendy Brown has argued that we exist at a time in history where we have an urgent need for alternative spaces, both in the physical room and in the mind, where an alternative longing can grow. In my degree project I have taken a closer look at this space – what could it be, how does it work, what would it look like if it was made real? By exploring play theory I try to understand how and if play can be triggered and how this can be translated into a space. By deepening my knowledge about imagination and the relation between imagination and social development, I try to seek answers to how play can be used as a starting point for change. By treating play as a space in a double sense – both as a physical room and a special place inside us, I explore the possibilities this space has for creating new dreams. This is also a project where I try to restore my own belief in storytelling as something beyond escapism. Aiming to create an in-between, a fusion between scenography, illustration and installation, I seek to create a platform where my work can be the basis for new discussions and meetings. By exploring the performative elements of a room I want to invite the visitor to enter the image and merge with the content. I want to create a work that embraces the visitor and that can be experienced on many different levels depending on the visitor’s interest, age and prerequisites. The essay consists of three parts. My project started with an analysis of the current economical situation. In the first part of this essay I make a summary of this research, and give a brief background to my experiences working in the gap of storytelling and economics. In the second part I will investigate the basic functions of imagination and play, and see how our longing is linked to the development of society. In the third part I will talk about the physical outcome of my project - my process, choices, difficulties and conclusions. For practical reasons I have choose to put all images in a separate appendix at the end. These images shows extracts from my artistic process as well as a documentation of the installation showed at the Spring Exhibition.