How can we collect memories?

Degree Project

Tracce di Memoria

Beatrice Carner

Indelible marker on white paper 32 x 30 cm, 19 pieces 

 

 

At the heart of the project is a collaboration between an aspiring artist and five elderly residents of a nursing home: through the hands of the artist, drawing becomes the bridge by which the residents' life experiences are captured and treasured, allowing their memories to be transformed into permanent visual works.

In my practice, I act as a vehicle, a “sponge”, absorbing memories and simultaneously pouring them onto paper through drawing, a media that straddles photography and text, capable of recording not only their memories, but also how they intertwine with my perception of the stories, inevitably also encapsulating the emotions I felt during the interviews.

The elderly are custodians of traditions, stories, and experiences that are often undocumented; transforming their stories into images allows for the preservation of a collective memory that might otherwise be lost. Through my illustrations, I have created an archive of stories that allows the public to identify with the experiences of other people and see in their story, their own, exploring the meaning of existence at a crucial stage of life that is often overlooked by contemporary society. 

What remains of my artistic research is not only the illustrations, but the intergenerational relationship that could be created through this practice: a contact that allowed to transport the memories of part of one generation to another, mine.

 

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A project made in the course

Bachelor of Design and Art Laurea / Abschluss 25.1

Graduation projects from the Majors in Design and Art First Session 2025.
More projects by Beatrice Carner