Nearing the end of Super Studio 1, each of us had at least one question we were curious to know as a jumping off point for next term. After conducting several iterations based on information I pulled from several of the probes and interviews, my big question ended up being, "What is ordinary?"
What does ordinary exactly mean in the context of the family? Is that something to be celebrated, or something families are ashamed of? What makes families or family members define themselves as ordinary and how can we transform that word in a way so that it starts to detach itself from it's negative stigma?
If anything, what I've been learning is that no two families are alike. There's something unique and rich about each of these families that should be celebrated. Maybe ordinary is actually about being different. Perhaps the most special juxtaposition we've found so far in Super Studio is that of the family and the distinct individuals that, though very unique in their own ways, can live together because of nebulous strings and forces. Sometimes the simplest words are a clue to the deepest and most profound findings. I aim to spend part of Super Studio 2 analyzing how this question may lead elsewhere.
SUPER STUDIO 1 :: What Is Ordinary?
These are several of the analysis iterations that I worked on before reaching the idea below. It's not easy discovering ways to visualize one's findings - at least for me. Post-it's, clouds, sketches, highlights, bookshelf searches, image hunts...
Julia Tsao and I joined forces and created an image map of two of the research participants. On the left is a depiction of their world of desire. The images and text were interpreted and taken from their Travel Log probe. On the right is a map of what exists in their world of reality. Images and text were taken from several probes: the photojournals, the journals and the interviews. We are planning to continue to expand along this route for next term.
