The project called “Forgotten Playground” is about sound and visual recording of memories over time. Using a Ricoh Theta S 360 camera and a Zoom H3 VR recorder, I captured the audiovisual experience of this desolate playground – a once-thriving playground after it was abandoned. This has a great personal meaning for me. It was a great place for childhood joy, but today it is now a silent memory.
I chose this playground as the theme because it is rooted in my emotional memory. It used to be a place full of childhood memories, although I could never get rid of that time and is now completely forgotten. The transition from a vibrant environment to a barren environment threatens the passage of time and memory. Revisiting the old site, I found that the feeling was different again. The 360-degree format of the visual elements invites the viewer to engage in an interactive playground exploration.
This immersive experience promotes reflection on the memory itself, as well as the diminishing vitality of the space. The initiative encourages deeper interaction with themes of loss and nostalgia by guiding viewers through their surroundings. In this project, an environment that is now very lonely and today desolate was captured. There’s something about this approach, it’s like an opportunity to make all sense of direction disappear and the listener is thrown into a forgotten playground.
Through live recordings, I captured the sounds around me from the environment, including the rustle of leaves, the chirping of birds that run out from time to time, and some distant noises from the city. Overall, these sounds create a very lonely atmosphere, ushering in the silence of the scene.
Through the use of sound and visual arts, the project examines personal and social memory. I used the methods I learned this semester to craft a project that invited people to interact with their memories while reflecting on my personal experiences. The written commentary accompanying this article underscores the importance of preserving and considering our personal histories in a changing world.
References:
– PCM.TV. (2015, December 23). Ricoh Theta S 360°測試 [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=36C69iT0mqk
– The Listening City – Hildegard Westerkamp on sound design and nature films. (n.d.). Vimeo. https://vimeo.com/486187905