My artwork explores the intricate relationship between the Internet and individual memory through painting, offering a visual representation of the complexities of time and memory. When streaming music through a music streaming service, the exact amount of time remaining is always displayed on the screen. Despite each song having a different playback time, the timeline length on the screen remains uniform, with only the speed of movement of the commands changing according to the playback time. In contrast, in my artwork, the size of the paper and the working window are fixed, so the visible length remains constant. These differences are articulated through variations in drawing time, line color, and shading.
Similarly, our lives are not just about the length of time, but about what we do within that limited time. This "what we do" can be expressed in terms of density and quality, symbolized by color. Once a line is drawn, it cannot be exactly reproduced. Just as past music is constantly overwritten by new memories, in my series of works, new paint is applied over previous layers without washing them away, creating increasingly complex images of memory.
In today's world, where the Internet has become ubiquitous, many people can easily enjoy music. For example, a song that was once remembered as a movie soundtrack may now evoke new memories of listening to it while driving. My artwork interrogates the connections between our experiences and sensory memories, and the nature, quality, and perception of time. My work challenges the notion of linear temporality and suggests that our perception of time is a dynamic and layered construct. It draws on the concept of temporal fluidity, where past, present, and future are intertwined and constantly reshaped by new experiences and memories. This idea is reminiscent of Henri Bergson's notion of durée, where time is understood as a continuous flow rather than a series of discrete moments.
My work is concerned with theories of memory and cognition, particularly how digital technologies affect our memory and experience of time. The Internet, as a vast repository of information and media, is constantly altering our personal and collective memories. This aligns with the work of theorists such as Pierre Nora, who discusses how modern media transform lieux de mémoire (sites of memory) into dynamic, ever-changing constructs.
By exploring these themes, my artwork seeks to provoke reflection on how our experiences and sensory memories are interconnected, and how the nature of time, its quality, and our perception of it are constantly evolving in the digital age. I invite viewers to consider the complexity of time and memory, and how technology shapes our understanding of these fundamental aspects of human existence.