Photography Workshop

Daily Carry & the Extended Self

Paola Piroddi Fachhochschule Vorarlberg InterMedia Master SS2011 Dozent: Arno Gisinger

CONTENT

Concept Methodology Project Format Research Best Practice Examples Conclusions References

p. 1 p. 1 p. 3 p. 9 p. 9 p. 12 p. 17 p. 18

Daily Carry & the Extended Self.

A visual approach to investigating what people carry and what these items might say about them.

CONCEPT
The project opens a window to the photographed subjects intimacy. The goal is to learn more about the subjects, as well as to capture a portion of their lives and personalities through the items they consider essential enough as for carrying them day by day. The resulting photographs have the character of portraits. Besides answering questions about particular aspects of a person, the project invites people to question our notion of individuality. We all love being special and different from the rest of the people. Are we really? Do the items appearing in the series define the subjects persona? Can they capture the essence of the person?

METHODOLOGY
All photos were taken following the same methodology. The subjects selected for being a part of the project are couples and they are all familiar to me, being a part of my network in Switzerland. The series of photographs is composed by diptychs, in which the photograph showing the mans items is always placed at the left side of the set, and the womans items at its right side. Working with couples was chosen in an attempt to compare directly what women and men carry, but also to get two different types of readings out of each set: 1) individual 2) couple The photographs were taken in the subjects houses, where they were asked to show the items they carry in their bags, purses, backpacks, etc., on a daily basis. It is important to mention that the subjects didnt know what the photographic project was about until we met personally at their house. All the items were meticulously arranged over the floor or a flat surface forming a vertical rectangle. The shots were taken under natural light and from the top. Maintaining the same distance (70 cm.) between the objects and the camera was essential to keep the same scale between the items in all the series. Each set of photographs has a different background and maintains an empty space around the objects, similar to a frame.

Fig 1. Object arrangement

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Several attempts or trials were done before establishing the previously explained methodology. Aspects of the photographs, such as light, proper background and object arrangement were proved and defined through the attempts. The process can be seen in the following images, where the left column shows the initial trials and the right column the trials done under the established methodology.

Fig 2. Initial photographic trials

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Project

Werner & Veronica

Peter & Karin

Daily Carry & the Extended Self

Fernando & Angela

Max & Petra

Daily Carry & the Extended Self

Gianpietro & Paola

Simon & MariaTeresa

Daily Carry & the Extended Self

Roland & Petra

Adrian & Patricia

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Urs & Barbara

Felix & Mariale

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FORMAT
This photographic series is intended for being presented in the following format: 92.3 x 60.3 cm. With these measurements, the objects represented in the photographs appear in their real size. The prints will be placed over the floor, in order for the viewer to have the same perspective from which the photographs were taken.

RESEARCH
Everyday Carry Everyday Carry, or EDC, generally refers to small items or gadgets worn, carried, or made available in pockets, holsters, or bags on a daily basis to manage common tasks or for use in unexpected situations or emergencies. In a broader sense, it is a lifestyle, discipline, or philosophy of preparedness (Everyday Carry blog). In other words, these are items that one should keep on or near ones person when not at home, in order to help with both planned and unforeseen events during the day. An EDC has to do with peoples lifestyle and their level of preparedness for facing the different situations that might be encountered throughout the day. Although theoretically an EDC should consist of just the basic items needed to help someone answer quickly to certain situations, it can be seen in the reality that all people have very different needs and therefore carry a different amount and type of items as part of their EDC. An EDC is not only the reflection of a persons specific needs, but also of the needs originated by the society, culture, time, etc., we are living in. The type and number of items that people carry on a daily basis may evolve through time as the individuals life and needs change. It is because of this that an EDC reveals information about the person who owns the items and might be considered as a sort of portrait. There is an ongoing trend in which people take a photograph of their EDC and post it online on websites like Flikr or Everyday-Carry.com. The last one is a photoblog dedicated to document the essential items that people around the world carry in their pockets. After looking at the amount of material that has been already posted online, it is surprising to find out how people are willing to expose what they carry in their bags or purses to the world. EDC as Portrait Besides an objects use or function, why does a person choose a specific wallet or specific sunglasses as part of their possessions? Do people deposit, or even base their identity on the objects they possess? What do possessions reveal about a person? Material possessions and consumer goods have become a part of our everyday lives. Material goods are designed to make our lives easier and more convenient. However, there is evidence that possessions play such an important role in our lives because they fulfill various psychological functions, such as giving people control, independence, enjoyment, and emotional comfort. Already in 1890 William James identified in his book Principles of Psychology the concept of the material self , where a persons identity is extended

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beyond the physical boundaries of the body to include material goods. Following the same concept, Sartre established three ways through which individuals learn to consider an object as a part of the self: control or appropriation, creation, and knowledge of the object. The greater the control we exercise over an object, the more closely allied with the self the object will become. According to Belk (1988), the possessions incorporated in the extended self serve valuable functions for keeping healthy personalities: 1) They act as an objective manifestation of the self. That is, they help us manipulate our possibilities and present the self in a way that garners feedback from others who are reluctant to respond so openly to the unextended self (Belk, 1988, p. 159). 2) They give us a personal archive or museum that allows us to reflect our personal histories. People use their own possessions to express who they are and to build their identity in terms of who they would like to be (Dittmar & Halliwell, 2008). Furthermore, material possessions also influence the way we perceive the identity of others. In the words of Brekke, Howarth and Nyborg, we use our possessions not only to communicate to others how we want them to see us, but we use the possessions to communicate our self-image to ourselves, or to reinforce it. Through our possessions our identity is visible in object form (p.5). Definition of Identity A persons identity is defined based on how this person is viewed by her- or himself in relation to past experiences, to other people, and to the future. According to Dittmar (1992) an individuals identity consists of the personal and social characteristics of people as understood by themselves and others (p. 73). Over time, individuals develop a set of symbols, which they believe represent the self-identity they wish to project (Gentrym, Baker & Kraft, 1995). Material possessions are a means in which these desired self-identity is often expressed not only to ones self, but also to others. An individuals identity is not ascribed, but increasingly achieved, and possessions play a role in creating, maintaining, and preserving such identity. The function that possessions play for an individual ranges from their functional or instrumental roles, to their symbolic ones. As instruments, possessions give the user control over an activity. On the other hand, in their symbolic roles, possessions symbolize and reflect personal characteristics, as well as group affiliation (Dittmar, 1991). It is a well known fact that people often buy consumer goods based on their psychological benefits, rather than their functional value. According to Dittmar (Dittmar & Halliwell, 2008), the psychological importance of material possessions and their connection with our sense of identity is evidenced by the following facts: 1) Material possessions are experienced as a part of the individuals extended self, reaching beyond the boundary of the physical body. 2) Possessions give people a sense of control and mastery, functioning as symbols of their personal and social identity. 3) The perceived differences in the possessions between cultures, as well as between women and men, reflect the ways in which these groups build their identities.

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Csikszentmihalyi and Rochberg-Halton (1981) also wrote about the relationship existing between individuals and their material possessions, pointing out that things tell us who we are, not in words but by embodying our intentions. In our everyday traffic of existence, we can also learn about ourselves from objects, almost as much as from people (p. 91). In other words, when individuals interact with, or think about their possessions, a sense of identity is created and preserved. Choosing Certain Objects over Others A material good may signify status, express unique aspects of the person and symbolize idealized identities (Dittmar, 2004). It is due to the association of goods with idealized images or identities, that makes people want to buy them in an attempt to reflect the symbolic meanings associated with such goods. For an individual, buying certain goods may be like buying or approaching an ideal identity (Dittmar & Halliwell, 2008). However, material goods or, more specifically, the meanings they carry, dont only serve for a individual to build her or his public image. As already mentioned, for many people material goods are also a reference or point of view from which to see themselves. This search for an ideal identity or idealized images of people and lifestyles may be one of the causes leading to a lack of individuality among the members of the society. If most of the individuals share the same ideals, and therefore, aim for building the same identity, the result will be a homogenized society. This phenomenon is however opposed to the western cultural values of what it means to be a person and having an identity: standing out from the crowd, being unique and highly individualized (Dittmar & Halliwell, 2008, p. 27). Attachment to our Possessions It is a well known fact that we consider our possessions as parts of ourselves. However, the reasons of an individual for choosing certain objects as significant, must be considered based on the meaning these objects possess and the relationship of such meaning to the individuals personal values. Richings (1994) refers to two types of values or meanings: public and private. While public meanings are the subjective meanings of an object that are shared by the society at large, the private meanings of an object are the sum of the subjective meanings that an object holds for a particular individual (Richins, 1994, p. 523). In order for an object to acquire a private meaning, the individual must interact repeatedly with it, cultivating the meaning. Individuals tend to cultivate meanings for objects or possessions that are consistent with their personal values. As a result of cultivation processes, the meanings of consumers important possessions will embody or characterize their personal values and other aspects of the self (Richins, 1994, p. 523). Dittmar also writes about peoples attachment to possessions, affirming that there are different types of attachments: affiliation, autonomy seeking, and past, present or future temporal orientation. These types of attachments may combine themselves and help narrate a persons life story. Kleine, Kleine III and Allen (1995) evidence the fact that people use their relationship to certain possessions or objects to infer meaning to themselves by explaining the relations between person-possession as follows: The conventional view of person-possession relations portrays the self as an inner core (the true self ) surrounded by layers of decreasing authenticity. () An objects distance from the core self is related inversely to the degree to which it reflects ones authentic or true self. Self-relevant objects are those perceived as
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close to the core self. This way of thinking implies a direct link between self and object. This approach also emphasizes self as me, ignoring the importance to self-conception of relations with others. (p. 341) What Objects Say About Us As previously mentioned, evidence has been found proving that possessions reveal characteristics of their owners. As a result, individuals are capable of reading elements of a persons identity only by observing his or her possessions (Burroughs, Drews & Hallman, 1991 in Richins, 1994). This is due to the fact that the objects consumers consider as valuable often reflect something about the type of people they are. It might be said that the objects someone values are a window into that persons inner self. A research done by Richins (1994) examined whether possessions characterize or embody personal values and examined the extent to which possessions communicate their owners personal values to other people. The research showed that a persons material values can be communicated through socially constructed stereotypes about possessions and about the relationship between possessions and their owners (Richins, 1994, p. 522). The fact that people are able to find out something about a stranger only by looking at the clothes or possessions is based on social stereotypes about the relationship between possessions and their owners. In other words, the meaning of possessions as symbol of social categories are not objective facts, but social constructions. According to Dittmar (1992), we experience our environment as an ordered and comprehensible world. Parts of the order, like socio-cultural categories, such as class, gender, age, occupation and status, are a social construct. Material goods play a particular role here, in the sense that gender, class, and status are clearly marked by certain kinds of possessions and dress. During socialization, we learn to understand the map of our social environment in terms of which material possessions signify which social categories (Dittmar, 1992, p. 70). It must be emphasized that objects will only function as symbols that communicate the personal qualities of individuals when the meaning of such symbols is socially shared.

BEST PRACTICE EXAMPLES

Persona by Jason Travis The american photographer Jason Travis began in November 2007 to take photographs for his Persona diptych series, in which he examined the contents of messenger bags, backpacks, purses, etc., belonging to creative people living in Atlanta. His main goal was to determine what the subjects considered important in their lives. Furthermore, Travis wanted to study the things people have in common by identifying the similarities in the individual possessions. Jasons series is composed by an image of the items carried on a daily basis combined with a portrait of the subject. It was important for the photographer to take portraits in which the subjects appear confident and comfortable. In other words, the subjects are portrayed just as the photographer sees them. The spectators dont only have a glimpse at the items that people usually carry in their bags and pockets, but they might also get to identify themselves with absolute strangers based on such items. The series is composed of around 236 photographs, which can all be found in Flickr.

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Fig 3. Photographs from the Persona series by Jason Travis

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Travis recently partnered with CNN for an adaptation of his Persona series called Persona SXSW Edition. A Persona booth was installed at the South by Southwest trade show, allowing Travis to extend his photographic experiment at a larger scale than he had ever imagined. Over the course of four days people could come to the photo booth and have their photograph taken. More than 700 subjects from around the world, including many celebrities, took pictures of themselves, of the things they carried, and shared demographic data at the booth to create profiles that were collected in a database. Finally, the photos and the information were merged and uploaded online as iReports. As a part of the experiment, people were asked for the one item they couldnt live without. More than one third of all participants listed their mobile phone as their essential item. This statistic was published along with the statistics of the most displayed items at the CNNs blog.

Fig 4. Photographs from the Persona SXSW Edition series by Jason Travis and CNN

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Marsupium main by Pusha Petrov Petronela (Pusha) Petrov is a graduate from the cole des Beaux-Arts de Metz and current student at the cole Suprieure dArt de Lorraine, who constantly engages herself with the topic of possessions and their roles in our intimacy and daily lives. In 2010 she created the photographic series Marsupium main, in which she photographed different handbags belonging to women. Petrov made her photographs on pedestrian streets in France, Belgium, and in Timisoara, her home town in Romania. Her methodology included putting a white surface on the floor, over which the handbag had to be standing. The half open bags, which were photographed from the top, give the spectators a glimpse of the objects carried. The resulting photographic series is representative of the feminine intimacy. It communicates some aspects about the owners personalities, and leaves many more aspects to our imagination. Petrovs approach is definitively of great interest and leaves us wanting for more.

Fig 5. Photographs from the Marsupium main series by P. Petrov

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Homestories by Stephanie Senge The second example might seem a little distant from the definition of an EDC; however, it is closely related to the fact that objects do reveal something about the person who owns them. Stephanie Senge (1972) is a German artist, who repeatedly uses topics like consumerism and the material culture for creating her art. Homestories is a photographic series developed by the artist between 2004 and 2006. Stephanies methodology consisted in visiting various people she is close to in their own houses. After talking to them, she selected a group of objects that corresponded to the person and to his or her life. Having chosen the objects, the artist turned the house into her studio and built an installation, which she then photographed and dismantled. The series of photographs is interesting not only in their aesthetics, but also in the fact that the artist takes full advantage of the space and objects in order to create a relation with the owner.

Fig 6. Photographs from the Homestories series by Stephanie Senge

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Conclusions We use our possessions to communicate our self-image to ourselves, as well as to the others. It is through such possessions, that our identity gains visibility. These and most of the facts previously mentioned in the research, fit with the definition of an EDC. The objects that individuals carry with them day by day do not only give them a sense of control and safety, but also help them to build and communicate their identity. It was very interesting looking at what people carry in their bags and purses on a daily basis. I do believe that an EDC can be read or deciphered, and that it can reveal important information about a persons personality and lifestyle. Since the subjects I choose for making my series of photographs were all familiar to me, I had since the beginning some sort of expectations about the kind of objects that they would have in their pockets or purses. In some of the cases my expectations were fulfilled, while in others, I got some surprises. As a consequence of the project, I got to learn the subjects in a better and deeper way. Something that I considered very interesting, was the fact that everyone wanted to feel special or interesting. Many of the subjects said that they dont really carry any interesting things with them and they almost tried to cheat in order to spice up their EDC a bit. For me there is a contradiction between this desire of being unique and that what is reflected in the photographs. If we are all concerned about being different, wouldnt that be reflected in the objects that people carry with them? Why is it then that we all carry almost the same objects? I agree with the theories from Helga Dittmar, who says that we use our possessions to build an ideal identity and to communicate such identity to the others. It is the search for such identity that probably makes us loose our individuality, because thanks to the media and the globalization we have all learned to aspire for the same things: the same brands, the same looks, etc. As an industrial designer, I was interested in finding out which are the most carried objects and in trying to find out why is it that they are so important to their owners. It becomes clear through the series of photographs, that people value and get attached to their possessions because of their instrumental and psychological benefits. It would be very interesting for me to expand the project to other countries and see how the selection of objects varies depending on the cultures. Another approach that would interest me would be to be able to compare what people carry today against to that what people will carry in ten years or more. I believe that the evolution of the objects shows not only the evolution of the person who owns them, but also the evolution of our society.

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References Belk, Russell W. (1988). Possessions and the Extended Self. Journal of Consumer Research, 15, 139-168. Brekke, K. A., Howarth, R.B., & Nyborg, K. (n.d.) The social nature of needs, growth and environmental quality. Retrieved from: http://siti.feem.it/gnee/pap-abs/brekke.pdf Csikszentmihalyi, M., & Rochberg-Halton, E. (1981). The meaning of things: Domestic symbols of the self. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Dittmar, H. (1991). Meanings of material possessions as reflections of identity: Gender and social material position in society. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 6 (No. 6), 165-186. --------- (1992). The social psychology of material possessions: To have is to be. New York: St. Martins Press. --------- (2004). Are you what you have?. The Psychologist, 17 (No. 4), 206-210. Dittmar, H., & Halliwell, E. (2008). Consumer culture, identity and well-being: The search for the good life and the body perfect. Sussex: Psychology Press. Everyday Carry Blog. (n.d.). Retrieved from: http://everyday-carry.com/ Gentry, J., Menzel, S., & Kraft, F.B. (1995). The role of possessions in creating, maintaining, and preserving ones identity: Variation over the course. Consumer Research, 22, 413-418. Kleine, S.S., Kleine III, R. E., & Allen, C.T. (1995). How is a possession me or not me?: Characterizing types and an antecedent of material possession attachment. Journal of Consumer Research, 22, 327-343. Petrov, P. (n.d.). Intimit et Vie Quotidienne: Quand la totalit devient diffrente de la somme desparties. Richins, M. L. (1994). Special possessions and the expression of material values. Journal of Consumer Research, 21 (No. 3), 522-533. Saba, M. (2011, May 5). The things you carry: Show and tell. CNN iReport. Retrieved from: http://edition. cnn.com/2011/IREPORT/03/25/persona.sxsw. irpt/index.html/ Senge, S. (n.d.). Homestories. Retrieved from: http://www.stephaniesenge.de/ Travis, J. (2010). Persona. Flickr. Retrieved from: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jasontravis/ sets/72157603258446753/

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