Exploring ideas for digital jewellery on a train
The train workshop was held during the train journey, following one of the participant’s (Jude) actual transition of moving to a new city for a new job. A new set of probes (Compass of Ourselves, DIY Music Kit, Stanhopes Thimbles and Sea Pottery pieces) were introduced to unfold insights from the Air[craft] workshop and open up space for Jude to imagine examples of digital jewellery for this particular context.
Stanhope Thimbles are objects that hide a tiny image. The black “peeps” are miniature photographic lenses, incorporated in different objects from the mid-19th century onwards and thimbles were an example of such objects. When held up to the light one can look through the lens and view the microscopic image with remarkable clarity. The thimbles are found objects from one of my visits to the Tynemouth flea market in Newcastle. Inspired by finding this thimble and the suggestion of looking into a hidden world, I began an exploration into the potential of using aspects of Stanhope thimbles within digital jewellery.
The Compass of Ourselves is a piece comprised of a compass and a piece of hematite. Hematite is a common rock-forming mineral with magnetic properties. During the participatory engagements with the participants, I asked them to imagine: Where does their personal compass points to? The magnet was introduced as a metaphor of their redirection to their anchor points during the transition.
Sea Pottery are pieces I have found in beaches in the North East of England and Scotland. Sea pottery are pieces that change over time. Their edges are rounded, worn out, evident of witnessing a change. There is a haunting quality about this change to me. How did they end up on this beach? They tell a story which often links with our experiences of that place. A piece was once part of an object, keeping some of its references of time in its form. This was a metaphorical link between the pieces of sea pottery and the self in/between two places that inspired me to use them as a probe in the follow-up meeting with the participants.
