The Thing Is…
M.F.A Thesis Project by: Delena Bradley
Designers in theatre practice the art of creating, curating, and assembling items on stage in collaboration with a performance to drive a narrative. We frequently think of inanimate items as evidence of human action or props in a drama driven by human actors. In this MFA thesis, I will challenge this by investigating how classism has played a role in undermining the intellectual and academic study of meaning in physical objects and craft. Then I will use theories of materialism, posthumanism, sociology, and assemblage from several disciplines to develop framework to explore and understand how I design, curate, and collage various items to tell a story. This is a study of theory through reflection on my past work and reflection in various exercises. I have learned how to devise, shape, and articulate my own approach to design theory by identifying the three lenses through which I look while making work; Positionality, Object Narrative, and Assemblage. This was a process of research and then thinking with objects and materials in the act of making. Deep and careful reflection on physical objects (costume, props, scenery, etc.) and the ways they express, contain, and communicate meaning is at the core of my artistic practice. Analyzing the way objects and assemblages shape our existence in this world, effect change, and often defy our understanding, can help artists and designers understand how meaning, knowledge, and expression can be found outside of the boundaries of text and language.
Below you will find a gallery of the various assemblage exercises on theory I have crafted for this study.
Click on Image to see Gallery
Positionality
I’m interested in how objects and assemblages shape one's Positionality. I think of Positionality as an assemblage of what makes you in relation to others, such as identity, class, race, gender, world-outlook, political view, ability status, etc. My research journey began with how one aspect of my identity, my social class, is manifested physically with objects. Parts of Western society often disregard thoughtful reflection on the material world and the work of crafts people because of their association with the feminine and poor. Therefore, the study of physical objects is often overlooked in design theory.
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Object Narrative
Considering an object’s biography and interaction with other objects and humans within its network provides an effective way to evoke meaning without the assistance of text or a human performer. I define Object Narrative as the story an inanimate item, or combination of items, can tell through space, composition, materiality, visual elements, tactile feedback, sound, movement, and semiotics. Objects are integral to storytelling in the theatre and I propose a method of designing that emphasizes the rich depth of meaning that can be found in any given object.
Click on Image to see Gallery
Assemblage
For my thesis, I will use Assemblage as a term that refers to the arranging of physical objects, textiles, clothing, etc., where each item carries its own meaning and the collection of items evokes narrative meaning as a whole. Furthermore, Assemblages can also refer to a collection of concepts that may not entirely be physical, such as ideas, roles, expectations, and so on. For example, one can look at Positionality and Object Narrative as kinds of Assemblages. So if Object Narrative focuses on a single object’s meaning, Assemblage focuses on the meaning from the dynamic relationships of multiple elements. Assemblages are lively and ever changing networks of physical and conceptual meaning.