After reading the text by Jane Bennett I started to think about all the different “categories” we have on our planet. Human, human-created objects, Nature, and Animals. Humans think that they can balance and control everything around us. But we can not, even if we are a smart species. Everything on this planet has a way of working and has had since way before humans started “taking over.” The idea of IKEA is a little like that, there is a set way to assemble your piece of furniture otherwise it will not function like it was set out to do. On the other hand, you can always reassemble the piece into something else but it takes a bit of knowledge and another set of tools to do it. But in this case, it does not work the same for our planet, we can not destroy a forest and then rebuild it that easily, it will take numerous years before the forest finds its ecosystem, connections, and way of functioning again.
My words are:
Web, Infinitesimal, Divinity, Diverse shapes, Encounters, Heterogeneous, Host, Agency, Propensity, Deterministic, Interplay, Part-whole, Configuration.
Heterogeneous - To Differ
Agency - To act, To Do
Propensity - To Behave
The three words stood out the most because they relate to my initial thoughts while reading the text. All the “categories” are in one way heterogeneous and they have the propensity to do certain things while humans are the strongest agency in the configuration.
Day one in the workshop:
Photos of the process, firstly, from dissembling the table to details about the table. The individual pieces after dissembling the whole table I had (see picture5-7):
1 Wooden big half circle with stains
2 (1/4 circle) Curved wooden pieces (one broken)
3 Wooden legs (one shaped differently at the top)
1 Wooden long flat piece
1 Wooden smaller piece with a curve on one side
2 Metal corner brace brackets
3 Metal sleeve anchors
3 Metal bolts
9 Metal long screws
4 Metal medium screws
8 Metal small screws
3 Metal washers
3 Metal nuts
I also look closer at the table besides the stains there is also a possible hole that has been filled with something white (likely some wood filler). Then I can see that the table is laminated so it is not one solid piece of pine wood. Below is also a video of how I am trying to separate the glued piece into one of the bigger curves. A classmate decided to take my piece and try it, it made some dents in the piece that were stuck on the big curve.
Continuing to look at the pictures, I found some guests who had been living a life on the table.
1 spider in a corner, well hidden away from humans and other dangers.
5 (unknown) insects are in a hole where 1 metal sleeve bolt is going in and the wooden leg connects the frame that will hold the tabletop.
Finally, in the photos, I have a drawing of how I calculated the triangle and a thought on how to attach it. The final picture is of how I decided to attach it. 3 long screws attaching the legs.
The broken piece of the (1/4 circle) curve needed a repair for my design to work. But I didn't want to fix it to not be seen, I didn't want to hide the history. So I decided to try to colour the glue black to show that the part had been broken. I had to try on a test piece to see if the acrylic colour weakened the glue. But it didn't so I decided to glue the piece together.
My next thought was how I could attach the metal pieces to the curved wooden pieces that I wanted to have over my shoulders. I knew it would be very uncomfortable to have it directly on my shoulder. I was thinking of putting the rope around so the rope rested on my shoulder, but this had to be tested. It seemed like it would be too unstable. The three photos of my sketchbook show some of my thoughts.
Day three in the workshop:
The first photo is my first idea, to have the rope around the whole piece of wood. As I expected, it did not work, it was not steady at all so I had to rethink. I decided to take the smaller piece with a curve on one side to use on my shoulder. That worked very well. And the other bigger curved piece worked perfectly as support on my hip. But I had a few pieces left (see the third photo above).
1 Wooden big half circle with stains
1 Wooden long flat piece
5 30-degree angle small cut-off pieces from the legs
1 Metal sleeve anchor
1 Metal bolt
4 Metal long screws
4 Metal medium screws
8 Metal small screws
1 Metal washer
1 Metal nut
Picture from the first test with the final "dress" piece.
Video of the first spin with the "dress".
Day four in the workshop:
Thinking of what I could use the leftover pieces for. I decided to make a stand for the dress to be able to hang it up and/or display it. I had an idea that I drew in my sketchbook but after a while and some thinking about how to use my screws efficiently. I felt like I had to think of something else. That's when I came up with my final idea, the picture to the right.
Final piece.
First walk with the "dress".
Reflection on the workshop:
The time in the workshop was fun and I could express my thoughts in a physical object. To go from a text to something more than note-taking (visually or normally) was freeing. I am a person who loves to experiment and build things to bring things out of my mind, nor am I good at explaining my thoughts in speech so writing or creating is easier.
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