In Text und Bild –
Übersetzung eines Raumes
Workshop
Muthesius Academy of Fine Arts and Design, Kiel 2008
The workshop »In Text und Bild – Übersetzung eines Raumes« (In text and image – translating a space) took place as a part of the conference »Wörtliche Blicke – Zur Wechselwirkung von Fotografie und Text« (Literal Glances – on the interplay between photography and text) at the Muthesius Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Kiel.
The point of origin for the workshop was a photograph of a space – a very specific, if unimportant, walk-through room in the Academy. We asked which of the room’s qualities were not visible in the photograph. Different terms were suggested, like temperature, smell, the haptic characteristics of the surfaces, the fourth wall, the room’s history, the words spoken within it, etcetera.
The task was to investigate and expand upon one of these invisible qualities, either in the room itself or using the photograph. The students were to use for their task only those materials which could be found in the room itself, with the addition of language, voice, and writing. One quality was investigated by us as a group. This involved each group member drawing a different room, similar to the walk-through room being examined, on a photocopy of the photograph. Some people were reminded of the hallway in their parents’ house, or the storage closet in a shared flat ...
We took the results of this activity, together with the other work on the room, and exhibited it in the room itself.