I decided to walk through north Philly observing the local businesses located around the area. Also, I interviewed a college graduate requesting her opinions on the environment.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Design Study 2 Ross Sullivan
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1) For this Design Study I chose to create a map, with specific trigger points located all over the city of Philadelphia. Transportation modes to get to and from each destination are not limited in any way. How you choose to travel, becomes part of your experience. This also gives participants a chance to get a good taste of the city, no matter how they travel.
2) The communication method used for this is a cell phone with picture, email, and gps capabilities.
3) INSTRUCTIONS: This is done with a group of people, like a class, but each participant leaves the group to travel through the city individually. Starting at Washington Square, you are to take 2 pictures of anything you want, using your cell phone and send them to the group at a separate location. Once they receive your pictures they will respond, giving you your next trigger point. You choose how to travel to and from each trigger point. At each place the same process is carried out. The group back at their separate location is to print out these pictures and collect them into a photo album for you to have when you get back from traveling the city.
1 Washington Square
2 Independence Hall
3 Lorenzo’s and Painted Buildings
4 Sports Complex
5 Rittenhouse Square
6 Love Park
7 City Hall
4) The point of this Design Study is to be aware that you are creating your own, personally unique, narrative. By going from place to place by yourself and taking pictures of only things that interest you, you are creating an experience that is solely yours.
5) ASSESSMENT: You write your own story as you travel from place to place in Philadelphia. The pictures you take along the way are put together in a photo album to represent your personal experience. Everything you do, aside from the places you go, you choose. So, it is essentially up to you how you interact with the city; what you see, what you do, who you talk to and what you take away from it.
Design Study #2: Laura Napolitano
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I thought of several different communications methods for this walking/driving “tour” of Sellersville and Perkasie. One could be the use of a cell phone where the tourist will call a toll-free number seen on a sign of any kind. It could be the sign for the park, a bridge, playground equipment, street sign, or on the wall, anywhere. When they call, they will hear a recorded list of different stories to listen to—either a history of the general location, a story of the specific spot they are standing in or anything that relates to the location they are in. Another idea for a communications method would be podcasts that are downloadable for the tourist who has planned ahead to take this trip. There would be a separate podcast for each location and I chose this medium because they can be paused and listened to later if the listener needs to stop it for whatever reason. The podcasts would be a narrative of the location’s history and place in the community. With the podcasts, they will receive an itinerary of things to do at each location, like a list of performances at the Sellersville Theater, community activities at the Menlo Pool, the library, and the hours of operation at the Carousel, and snapshot of the menu at the Washington House. Another idea is something I “borrowed” from what museums and zoos do, primarily at the parks. There will be a stand with a picture of the place from when it first opened or some other activity that happened there in past, a speaker, and a button the person can press to listen to a brief description of the exact place they are standing or looking at.
This “tour” is primarily for people who have planned this trip ahead of time. If people are in the various locations where the recorded messages are, they will learn about the tour from a brief introduction or conclusion saying something like “if you would like to learn more about this tour please stay on the line or visit our website at the following…” In the podcasts, the narrator will point out the trigger points, but in the use of the cell phones or story stands (as I am calling them) they will be visible to everyone in the park. The latter are supplemental to the narrative podcasts, but also stand alone stories for those who are not on the tour. The idea of this is to have something that is very random like the Happenings, or Fluxus. Or it can be very planned out, yet different than the last trip like the Cut-Ups. The trigger points are placed somewhere that can be visible to anyone and everyone in that immediate location in order to have maximized participation, which will most frequently be random because of curiosity. This is meaningful because it increases participation from community members so they can learn more about the place where they live. It also increases participation from people who may be just visiting, which increases meaningful because they’ll then learn about a community that is different from theirs.
Navigation Instructions:
1) Start at Druckenmiller Park, watch whatever game(s) may be going on and if there isn’t, play their own game. If they have young children with them, let them play on the playground. After a half hour maximum, get in the car and drive to the next location.
2) Park at the Sellersville Theater where they can listen to each communication device and attend a performance if there is one taking place.
3) Walk next door to the Washington House and order lunch or dinner, preferably after listening to the narratives or stories. If there is a show at the theater, they can enjoy a meal before going back to the show.
4) After the Washington House (or a second trip to the theater), walk across the street to the gift shop and take a look around while interacting with the communication devices. Participants may or may not purchase something.
5) After the gift shop, the participants will need to walk back to their car, then drive to the next location, which is the shopping center. This isn’t as important as the other stops. The participants don’t need to actually visit the stores, but can if they want to. It’s just a convenient location to park their cars and listen to the rest of the narratives. The shopping center is across the street from Lake Lenape Park where they can walk to.
6) Based on the narrative podcasts, take the tour around Lenape Park. If so desired, walk over the bridges to Menlo Park and take the rest of the tour or walk back to the car and drive around to the specified location. (stop at Dairy Queen for dessert if desired)
7) Arrive at Menlo Park and take the tour. Once the narrative is completed here, either walk or drive to the next location—Menlo Pool and the Carousel. If it’s a Sunday and it’s open, take a ride on the Carousel. If the pool is open and it’s hot, take a dip if one-time visitor’s are allowed.
8) Spend some time in the park/playground, especially if there are children involved and also be sure to visit the library where additional information can be found on any of the locations in the tour.
The narrative would be difficult to write without doing some significant research about each location on the tour. I do have a small narrative written as a part of the map. Each location has a short caption, picture, and some even have a web-link for those who want to learn a little bit about each location before making the decision to take the trip. Like I mentioned before, this is supposed to be a narrative tour, but inevitably there will be random participants if the cell phones signs or story stands are put in place. The narrative will be very fragmented because they participants will be interacting with the location or order to fully experience and understand what the narrative is about. This interaction definitely leaves room for chance or improvisation because the participants will not have the same experience as the narrator. Instructions include things like “now go to this location and watch the show if there is one.” That’s pure chance, especially at the parks. It’s outdoors, nothing is the same from day to day in a park. There is definitely more than one story available to be told. There doesn’t have to be more than one story, but it definitely adds to the feel and history of the location.
This experience is more than just one. It’s at least one fully day, if you spend sufficient time at each point on the map. Hana Iverson talked about things that could be experienced by people all over the world. Eventually, participants could be from all over the world once the map becomes more interactive. The goal is to make the map completely virtual eventually, but it definitely takes away the experience of actually being at the specific spot. Significant elements are hearing the sounds of the parks, riding on the carousel, reading books in the library, swimming at Menlo Pool, playing on the playgrounds, eating at the restaurant, and viewing a performance at the Sellersville Theater; things that wouldn’t be the same viewing online. Most everything participants have to physically experience to get the complete understanding of it.
Design Study 2 - Matt Regan
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&ll=39.950395,-75.160775&spn=0.010018,0.013626&z=16&msid=107709632074466167647.000477fcbaf7666a0db59
For my design study the technology that participants must have is very simple. Each participant will be handed a cell phone with four numbers in it. Instead of a type of GPS system to help them know their path, a map of the path will be on their phone so that they can read it and not get off the route. Also they will be given a recorder.
The participants will follow the map given to them on their phone. Placed on the map are five specific points on five street corners along the path. There is a sixth point but that is just where they are to start. Two different participants will be going at the same time. In the phones will be four numbers. One designated corners participants must call the number related to that corner and listen to the story. The story will be one of a person who has been on that corner before at a given time. They will do this on three of the five corners. On the two that they do not have the number for they must interact with a stranger on the corner and ask for them to give their story and record it. The two participants will not have the same corners to ask for a story. At the end of the path the participants must call each other and meet up. Since they each had to find stories on corners that the other had heard a story through the phone, participants will share the stories they found and compare them to the ones they had heard on that corner.
This activity opens people’s eyes to the different types of people that can be found in a small area. Often when people are walking through the city they are too concerned with where they are going that they don’t realize the diversity and interesting lives around them. Even if they do you don’t really know background on those people or if they have a story to why or how they got where they are. This gives you the opportunity to notice both.
Design Study two- Daniel Speers- KIng of the Hill
1) MAP
View King of The Hill in a larger map
2) Communication
This game will involve a GPS tracking system for the “Shark” players and a flare gun to mark the new locations of each Hill. The Hills will be a Projected circle from a video projector displaying a large white ring on the ground and located in the spots marked on the map. Once a team takes a hill it will change colors immediately to either Blue or Red depending on the team that has control of the Hill.
3) Instructions
The boundaries for this game will be Spring Garden, Girard, 6th st and 2nd st approximately 1.8 miles in diameter. There are two teams involved in King of the Hill, The Red team and the Blue team. Each team consists of 10 members, five males and four females. The object of the game is to locate the hill and occupy it with all of your team members. The way to capture the hill is by having more team members than the other team for the longest period of time. As soon as the first teammate is inside the designated area a timer begins to count the seconds. If two teammates arrive from the opposite team and outnumber the original team inside the ring a second timer begins and the previous one stops. There is a designated blue timer and Red timer. When a timer reaches five minutes first, the Hill is captured. The contestants are given a fifteen-minute break to discuss what happened and strategize for the next Hill. When the fifteen-minute break is up a flare will shoot into the air from the next Hill. In this round Two “Sharks” are added to the play. Each “Shark”. Has a display of the map and GPS locations of each teams players. When the round begins the “Sharks” are released from the next Hill to intercept the players searching for it. The sharks will be wearing Yellow hats. A shark must tag a player in order to force him to stop. The player is not out but is forced to listen to the shark’s proposition and wait three minutes. The shark will offer the player $25 to quit the game, each time after that the amount will increase $25. If the player decides to continue he is allowed to finish his three minutes and continue to his next Hill. If the player decides to quit he goes to the last Hill collects his cash and is aloud to leave or wait to see the winners. The shark will try and catch one player per round. This will cause confusion and a sense of betrayal in the players who are left. They will be told the player quit the game and left. The team that wins the most hills at the end of the game will split a thousand dollars with who ever is left. The order in which the Hills will activate are Aquamarine, Blue, Green, Yellow, Red. The Red hill will be the location of the final narrative event in which the winning teams will be revealed as well as the players who cashed out and for how much they received.
4) Propose a narrative.
The narrative that is created in this game is an interesting social experiment. It slightly resembles Wolf’s Dilemma in the way it requires trust on the parts of each player to not sell out in order to guarantee themselves money. The players will not be told of the cash prizes offered at the end. It will be a test of a person’s integrity and will power. It will most likely create some sort of dramatic narrative about betrayal and selfishness. If the player is easily swayed by money it will be an easy decision the harms the performance of his team. If a player decides it is immoral or unethical to abandon his team for a small some of money, he will contribute to the win. In a way we are creating a narrative ripe in drama and somewhat epic in scale. It could vary in outcome every time the game is played depending on the interactions of the contestant’s. When the contestants stay till the end and are presented with the money the players who lost and had teammates abandon them will be outraged and the players that did abandon the team that wins will be outraged that they settled for so little when so much more was available.
This design study makes use of the landscape in Northern Liberties and turns it into a physically intense game of strategy speed and teamwork. It changes from a neighborhood into a giant obstacle course. The streets and there layouts will make it difficult for the players to pinpoint exactly were the flares are being launched from. This will force the players and sharks to use natural instinct and use way finding as their mode of navigation. The instructions are designed to create tension allowing the people involved to feel a sense of competition and a small sense of anxiety, which pushes them to succeed. As each Hill is captured the sense that territory is starting to belong to that person will make a subconscious impact that this land is becoming his or hers which will give a person new perspective on the properties inside his realm. The subjective landmarks will stay with them for sometime after the game. Instead of a bench in a park it will be a hotly contested Hill. I feel that this modality of Northern liberties would be fun interesting and good exercise, not to mention if you win, you get some cash.
Design Study 2 -- Jesse Papineau
A map of the Philadelphia Airport.
Overview:
The Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is a well-populated area that thousands of people pass through daily. These people are of any age, race or economic background, and are coming and going to just about anywhere in the world. Because of this extreme diversity, I believe that each person that passes through every terminal has a unique, informative story to tell about their airport visit – be it their reason for travel, where they're going, or maybe just a memory of a vacation in Philadelphia (for a tourist). While waiting at the gate for their plane to take off, people will be able to pass the time by thinking about the “travel story” that they want to add to the collection. Not only will participants be able to add their story, but they will also be able to listen, read or look at the stories that others before them have left.
Communications Method:
PHL has six terminals (A – F), so for this locative narrative, I will use three forms of communication. In terminals A and D, phones (or a number for people to call on their cell phone) will be available so that a person can call and leave their story in a voicemail, or call a separate number to hear the stories others have left before them. Participants will be encouraged to tell a story about a place in the world, either their destination or where they came from. In terminals B and E, a classic communication method will be utilized – pen and paper – so that participants can simply write down their name. In terminals C and F, a pencil and paper will be provided, however it will be for drawing – participants will be asked to draw a picture of the route they took to get to the airport.
Instructions:
At each gate in terminal A and D, a phone with a blue stripe on it (and signs with that same stripe that has the phone number on it) will be displayed for participants to call and tell a story about any place of their choosing, as long as it is either where they are departing to or coming from. For participants who are walking through the entire airport, they will discuss where they came from at terminal A and where they are going at terminal D. Participants will include anybody/everybody in the airport, and I'm sure many will be resistant at first, however as they start to listen to the stories others have left the many days before them, the more likely they'll be to add their own story. At terminals B and E, small pieces of paper will be left so that participants can simply write their name down, and then pin it to a large map of the world (where they are going) showing the extreme diversity of the travelers' destinations. At terminals C and F, participants will be asked to draw their own map of the route they traveled – then the pictures will be displayed. The outcome of the map is entirely up to the participant, it could result in a simple map of the train that they took to the airport, or could be a weaving, winding road driven from a far distance away. (At each terminal there will be the phone number listed so all can listen to stories left. Also, if one plans to walk through all terminals, they need to only go to terminals A – D.)
Narrative:
All who pass through any airport have at least one story to tell – where they came from and where they are going. While these might not be the most interesting of all stories, narratives can easily be born out of this basic information. Also, the idea of placing your name where you are going on a map gives personal significance to one's individual 'corner of the world.' To give more importance to 'place,' the final stage asks participants to draw a map of how they got to the airport, and once these incredibly detailed or overly simple pictures are displayed, a sense of commonality will be felt in all at the terminal.
Assessment:
The idea of this project is to evoke a sense of pride in either where you came from, or where you are going. This isn't necessarily pride in your home, however I'm sure that for many in the airport, their destination is their home. It's a given that any random person in an airport can come from any number of backgrounds, so this locative narrative helps to get these people to tell their story in one of the most diverse places of all. The simplicity of asking questions like “where are you going?” and “where did you come from?” help make this narrative accessible to people from all walks of life.
Overview:
The Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) is a well-populated area that thousands of people pass through daily. These people are of any age, race or economic background, and are coming and going to just about anywhere in the world. Because of this extreme diversity, I believe that each person that passes through every terminal has a unique, informative story to tell about their airport visit – be it their reason for travel, where they're going, or maybe just a memory of a vacation in Philadelphia (for a tourist). While waiting at the gate for their plane to take off, people will be able to pass the time by thinking about the “travel story” that they want to add to the collection. Not only will participants be able to add their story, but they will also be able to listen, read or look at the stories that others before them have left.
Communications Method:
PHL has six terminals (A – F), so for this locative narrative, I will use three forms of communication. In terminals A and D, phones (or a number for people to call on their cell phone) will be available so that a person can call and leave their story in a voicemail, or call a separate number to hear the stories others have left before them. Participants will be encouraged to tell a story about a place in the world, either their destination or where they came from. In terminals B and E, a classic communication method will be utilized – pen and paper – so that participants can simply write down their name. In terminals C and F, a pencil and paper will be provided, however it will be for drawing – participants will be asked to draw a picture of the route they took to get to the airport.
Instructions:
At each gate in terminal A and D, a phone with a blue stripe on it (and signs with that same stripe that has the phone number on it) will be displayed for participants to call and tell a story about any place of their choosing, as long as it is either where they are departing to or coming from. For participants who are walking through the entire airport, they will discuss where they came from at terminal A and where they are going at terminal D. Participants will include anybody/everybody in the airport, and I'm sure many will be resistant at first, however as they start to listen to the stories others have left the many days before them, the more likely they'll be to add their own story. At terminals B and E, small pieces of paper will be left so that participants can simply write their name down, and then pin it to a large map of the world (where they are going) showing the extreme diversity of the travelers' destinations. At terminals C and F, participants will be asked to draw their own map of the route they traveled – then the pictures will be displayed. The outcome of the map is entirely up to the participant, it could result in a simple map of the train that they took to the airport, or could be a weaving, winding road driven from a far distance away. (At each terminal there will be the phone number listed so all can listen to stories left. Also, if one plans to walk through all terminals, they need to only go to terminals A – D.)
Narrative:
All who pass through any airport have at least one story to tell – where they came from and where they are going. While these might not be the most interesting of all stories, narratives can easily be born out of this basic information. Also, the idea of placing your name where you are going on a map gives personal significance to one's individual 'corner of the world.' To give more importance to 'place,' the final stage asks participants to draw a map of how they got to the airport, and once these incredibly detailed or overly simple pictures are displayed, a sense of commonality will be felt in all at the terminal.
Assessment:
The idea of this project is to evoke a sense of pride in either where you came from, or where you are going. This isn't necessarily pride in your home, however I'm sure that for many in the airport, their destination is their home. It's a given that any random person in an airport can come from any number of backgrounds, so this locative narrative helps to get these people to tell their story in one of the most diverse places of all. The simplicity of asking questions like “where are you going?” and “where did you come from?” help make this narrative accessible to people from all walks of life.
Design Study 2 - Jack Martin
1. For design study 2 I wanted to inform people about what I consider one of the hidden gems of Philadelphia. It is off the beaten trail so in order to find it the participant must keep their eyes open for the pictures of the "trigger points" to let them know they are traveling in the right direction. The place I am talking about is the train tunnels in the woods off of Kelly Drive. This spot is a huge go to area for local graffiti artists and thrill seekers.
2. The participants will be able to find the tunnels if they are clever enough to gather up all of the clues. I would place images on local Philadelphia websites, take out ads in local papers, and place fliers all over the city advertising the tunnels and "The Hidden Gem of Philadelphia". Participants gather up all of the clues, which are images of landmarks to help guide your way. For example the first image would be of the restaurant Water Works, because you need to start out near the Art Museum to gain access to the tunnels.
3. The rules are pretty simple, when you reach the tunnels you must go down the tunnel with the light at the end first. When you go down the light tunnel you dont want to go too far because at the end is a police station and I know that they dont really like it when people go down there. The second rule is that you then must go down the dark tunnel. The dark tunnel brings the participants into total darkness. No matter how long you stare your eyes never adjust to how dark it is. Dont go too far down the tunnel, its pretty scary.
4. The narrative of this study would involve entering the tunnels. After you go down into the light tunnel and start heading for the dark tunnel the participant remembers seeing one clue that they have not come across yet on the journey. The clue is a big steel door, that looks very uninviting. The participant has to go far enough down the dark tunnel until they find the door. Then you have finished the journey to one of the hidden gems of Philadelphia.
Design Study 2
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1.For design study 2 I decided to create a locative narrative project involving passyunk st. in South Philly. I only involved the street from 11Th and passyunk to south street. While walking on this tour I past some of Philadelphia's most talked about restaurants like Pat's and Geno's, as well as things like the Italian Market, and South Street.
2. The communication method which I would use for this project is a cell phone. At my trigger points I think I would have just large red signs which one could not miss. These signs would have a number on them and texting or call that number will give you background information to the site or a local narrative.
3. The rule for my narrative is that anyone partaking in the tour must stop in every pizza place that they pass. I think this is a great way to see what the culture of this area is like, and also I think it allows you to interact more with the people of the community. In addition to this tourist must also stop at the "trigger points", which will be marked with a red light pole, or red sign. For "trigger points", I would pick some historically relevant places like the Italian Market, but also little things in the neighborhood like different murals that I had passed.
4. The narrative is a mixture of both random events and story's which have been told through the trigger points. This area is packed with so many different people that each walk through, provides another tale for one to tell. As for me personally, I remember one time walking down passyunk and a random man started to follow my boyfriend and have a full length conversation. Peculiar things of that nature is what makes this walk so great though. The interaction with people and the idea that something memorable will happen is guarantee.
5. My experience with this locative narrative has been great. It is really community oriented and allows travelers to relocate themselves in a new culture and a tight woven community. I think the historical relevance of my walk is also import, as the Italian Market has been a popular tourist spot for a very long time. This place needs really does not even need a narrative as visiting the trigger points provides conversation and new stories itself. This narrative reminded me of that article we read for class, Algorithmic Psychogeography, which talks about social drifters who just wonder to find their next experience which is what I was hoping to create.
2. The communication method which I would use for this project is a cell phone. At my trigger points I think I would have just large red signs which one could not miss. These signs would have a number on them and texting or call that number will give you background information to the site or a local narrative.
3. The rule for my narrative is that anyone partaking in the tour must stop in every pizza place that they pass. I think this is a great way to see what the culture of this area is like, and also I think it allows you to interact more with the people of the community. In addition to this tourist must also stop at the "trigger points", which will be marked with a red light pole, or red sign. For "trigger points", I would pick some historically relevant places like the Italian Market, but also little things in the neighborhood like different murals that I had passed.
4. The narrative is a mixture of both random events and story's which have been told through the trigger points. This area is packed with so many different people that each walk through, provides another tale for one to tell. As for me personally, I remember one time walking down passyunk and a random man started to follow my boyfriend and have a full length conversation. Peculiar things of that nature is what makes this walk so great though. The interaction with people and the idea that something memorable will happen is guarantee.
5. My experience with this locative narrative has been great. It is really community oriented and allows travelers to relocate themselves in a new culture and a tight woven community. I think the historical relevance of my walk is also import, as the Italian Market has been a popular tourist spot for a very long time. This place needs really does not even need a narrative as visiting the trigger points provides conversation and new stories itself. This narrative reminded me of that article we read for class, Algorithmic Psychogeography, which talks about social drifters who just wonder to find their next experience which is what I was hoping to create.
Monday, November 9, 2009
Design Study 2-Geocaching-Adam Bonanni
I’m a walker. I love the outdoors, and there’s no better way to really take in all the sights and sounds other than a nice walk. I have alot of free time between my morning and night class in TUCC, so I usually kill time by walking around the Logan’s Square area, and that’s where I got the idea for this project, but decided to add a little twist.
1) COMMUNICATION: The people who participate in this experiment will be given a laptop and a GPS device, and here is where the twist comes in. Participants will engage in Geocaching, an activity which is along the lines of a technologically structured scavenger hunt. The laptop will allow them to print out the map created for the activity, as well as access the coordinates that must be input to the GPS to pinpoint the exact location of the cache through the Geocaching website in order to find it using real-time mapping software. Using these two technologies will allow the user to determine the direction which they need to take, as well as navigate the lesser known streets with precision
2) RULES: The object of the activity is to take in the sights and sounds a city-goer might normally overlook, but the rules to the activity, instead of providing a more structured experience, serve to add more of an exploratory aspect. When the participant approaches the corner near where the cache is located, they are implored to pull somebody off the street to help them locate it. After the team locates the cache, the participant must ask their teammate to relate an experience they have had near the location where the cache was found. Also, the participant must find all caches in one day to evoke the experience of aimlessly wandering center city in a historical sightseeing tour
3) NARRATIVE: Each spot has great historical significance to Philadelphia; Mutter Museum, The Free Library, Pennsylvania Hospital, Rittenhouse Square, etc. I hope that, by each individual asking their teammate to relate to them an experience they have had around that area, that it brings to light the experience of living in the city. Instead of just being recognized as street corners and geographic landmarks, I hope that these places can be transformed into stories and human connections can be made from them. I relate this to what Martijn DeWell says about subjective landmarks, how something familiar can be transformed into a different experience because of how it relates to a particular person. 17th and Market would evoke completely different images for somebody if they were implored to thoroughly navigate the area and hear a story about why it is significant. Also, it is much easier for a person to feel enveloped in the culture of the area by walking through it instead of taking SEPTA or driving around the city.
4) ASSESSMENT: I think this could be an interesting experiment because it forces individuals to interact deeply not only with the terrain, but interact with those around them. It also will spread the idea of Geocaching, since the individuals chosen off the streets will be encouraged to pursue the idea out of, what I can only hope is an interest in the idea after seeing it be enacted. Most importantly, the idea of this project enacts the Semiotic method discussed in class. It makes us think why we would want to traverse all this distance on foot and what the benefits would be. It is only by doing that we realize how this activity could help us realize something we have never considered before; how to bring a fresh idea to a city we have experienced a hundred times over.
Design Study 2 by Robby Goss
Love Park
1. Map of Area
2. Throughout the park, there will be trigger points where people can use their cell phone and call a certain number to hear a unique story about that spot. Some spots, like the Love statue most definitely, will have multiple stories to hear from. When the number is called, a different story is played every time so you can call multiple times and hear a different narrative every time.
3. Rules:
- Roam around the park any way one would like.
- Anytime a you pass a green sign (trigger point) you must call that number to hear a narrative.
- Make conversation with someone at the Love Statue and see if they themselves have any experience here.
I feel making the participants walk around at random would be better cause they would hit the more popular areas more often. This would allow them to call the popular areas more often allowing them to hear more narratives about the same area. Also with the rule of making conversation with another person around the statue would give people a chance to have an experience of their own and possibly add it to the collection of narratives so it’s always growing and can be walked many times without repetition.
4. I was once at Love Park here standing at the statue taking pictures like anyone else would. It was an eventful night i must say. There was this one couple in particular you was all dressed up there, as though they had just come from a fancy restaurant and that this was the last stop on their date for the evening. Then they asked if i could take some pictures of them for them. Of course i would I told them. Then happily they went on a little stroll in the park. I saw them sitting on a bench nearby when they approached me again yet this time they seemed to be a bit more enthused. He asked “Im really sorry to bother you again but can you just take one more picture of us? I just asked her to marry me.” It made me almost giddy inside and i felt honored to take one more photo of them. It just shows that this is truly “Love” Park.
I felt Love Park was a good place to represent these sort of narratives cause even though its kind of cheesy, its that kind of feeling everyone wishes they had. Kind of a fairy tale feeling. It comforts us knowing others have had these experiences and so we come to this spot hoping to look for love as those before us have. Whether it be the love of the area like skateboarders have acquired, or the love of our lives.
1. Map of Area
2. Throughout the park, there will be trigger points where people can use their cell phone and call a certain number to hear a unique story about that spot. Some spots, like the Love statue most definitely, will have multiple stories to hear from. When the number is called, a different story is played every time so you can call multiple times and hear a different narrative every time.
3. Rules:
- Roam around the park any way one would like.
- Anytime a you pass a green sign (trigger point) you must call that number to hear a narrative.
- Make conversation with someone at the Love Statue and see if they themselves have any experience here.
I feel making the participants walk around at random would be better cause they would hit the more popular areas more often. This would allow them to call the popular areas more often allowing them to hear more narratives about the same area. Also with the rule of making conversation with another person around the statue would give people a chance to have an experience of their own and possibly add it to the collection of narratives so it’s always growing and can be walked many times without repetition.
4. I was once at Love Park here standing at the statue taking pictures like anyone else would. It was an eventful night i must say. There was this one couple in particular you was all dressed up there, as though they had just come from a fancy restaurant and that this was the last stop on their date for the evening. Then they asked if i could take some pictures of them for them. Of course i would I told them. Then happily they went on a little stroll in the park. I saw them sitting on a bench nearby when they approached me again yet this time they seemed to be a bit more enthused. He asked “Im really sorry to bother you again but can you just take one more picture of us? I just asked her to marry me.” It made me almost giddy inside and i felt honored to take one more photo of them. It just shows that this is truly “Love” Park.
I felt Love Park was a good place to represent these sort of narratives cause even though its kind of cheesy, its that kind of feeling everyone wishes they had. Kind of a fairy tale feeling. It comforts us knowing others have had these experiences and so we come to this spot hoping to look for love as those before us have. Whether it be the love of the area like skateboarders have acquired, or the love of our lives.
Sports Complex District, Philadelphia, PA
Philadelphia History through Sports (PHS)
Media and Technology:
Booths will be set up at checkpoints
Checkpoints will be located outside of historic sports sites
Booths must include at least one type of sensory media (visual, interactive, audio)
Booths must be clearly marked with a PHS icon
Booths must be non-linear in relation to each other, so participants may explore the area freely.
The last booth is used as an input and output booth. Participants can upload pictures, videos or text to share their favorite sports memories and add to the historical value of the area,
Visitors will navigate through the Sports Complex District to discover the gateways to the past through their interaction with multi-media, sound, pictures, and artwork. Participants will use the booths to explore the historical significance of the buildings and people who helped make Philadelphia sports so influential to modern day sports fans and Philadelphians alike.
Participant’s Rules:
Visitors may move freely throughout check points and explore as they go
Visitors must be prepared with their own set of standard headphones to participate in some booth activities such as audio and video clips
Visitors are encouraged to explore the area with others, such as their children to help create a fun and interactive learning experience
Participants must walk through the Sports Complex District to get to booths
Participants are encouraged to upload and share experiences to the last booth, as well as view others' experiences
Proposed Narrative:
A divorced father of one, takes his child to a Phillies game at Citizen Bank Park on a summer afternoon. With the awkwardness of free time at hand between this broken family, they decide to take advantage of the PHS tour. Through the first booth visited, they have a chance to experience and learn about Phillies' great Mike Schmid. They are able to watch videos of great plays and audio of interviews with coaches and players alike. The father begins to act funny. The child wonders why and asks what is wrong. The father replies, “Great things have happened here, not just including sports.” The child pesters their dad to tell them what that means. The father goes on to tell his child about the best Phillies game he has ever seen.
“There were twenty thousand people there that day, and I was the most nervous. I didn't think that I could be more nervous than the players! I took your mother to that game. She was a Cubs fan, but I was bugging her for weeks to come to a Phillies game with me. During the seventh inning stretch, everyone stood up, but I dropped to one knee. I asked your mother to marry me that day, and it was the best day of my life.”
The child, young and naïve, asks why they got a divorce if he loved her so much. The father just took his child's hand and told him that sometimes things don't always work out as planned, but great things still happen. At the end of their little tour of the sports complex, they upload a photo to the booth to share this day, time, and place, to share with others to come and have their adventure.
This proposal of the Philadelphia Sports through History walking tour makes use of walkable space throughout the Sports Complex District. There would be no need to renovate a any particular place, just use the open space available. The walkable space in itself is not very large, and is very exciting and enticing to walk, as opposed to an intimidating, long walking tour, allowing people of all ages to enjoy.
This element of a close walking area is very important in the success of PSH. The idea of having the walk and the media booths so close to one another is vital in not only bringing people in to participate, but to give the feeling of a small, tight-knit community, which some would argue, to be a vital part of being in the City of Brotherly Love.
This Locative Narrative reminds me a lot of the Jeremy Hight article Views from Above: Locative Narrative and the Landscape. These activities act much like the blues record discussed, but instead of just reading the past grooves, it is able to record new groves for the next participants. The idea of the PSH tour does not change the space or area of the sports complex district, but simply enhances the history, value, and memories that have made this area so successful.
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=103174934830393670385.000477f3c5f5a2dbe6811&t=h&z=16
Philadelphia History through Sports (PHS)
Media and Technology:
Booths will be set up at checkpoints
Checkpoints will be located outside of historic sports sites
Booths must include at least one type of sensory media (visual, interactive, audio)
Booths must be clearly marked with a PHS icon
Booths must be non-linear in relation to each other, so participants may explore the area freely.
The last booth is used as an input and output booth. Participants can upload pictures, videos or text to share their favorite sports memories and add to the historical value of the area,
Visitors will navigate through the Sports Complex District to discover the gateways to the past through their interaction with multi-media, sound, pictures, and artwork. Participants will use the booths to explore the historical significance of the buildings and people who helped make Philadelphia sports so influential to modern day sports fans and Philadelphians alike.
Participant’s Rules:
Visitors may move freely throughout check points and explore as they go
Visitors must be prepared with their own set of standard headphones to participate in some booth activities such as audio and video clips
Visitors are encouraged to explore the area with others, such as their children to help create a fun and interactive learning experience
Participants must walk through the Sports Complex District to get to booths
Participants are encouraged to upload and share experiences to the last booth, as well as view others' experiences
Proposed Narrative:
A divorced father of one, takes his child to a Phillies game at Citizen Bank Park on a summer afternoon. With the awkwardness of free time at hand between this broken family, they decide to take advantage of the PHS tour. Through the first booth visited, they have a chance to experience and learn about Phillies' great Mike Schmid. They are able to watch videos of great plays and audio of interviews with coaches and players alike. The father begins to act funny. The child wonders why and asks what is wrong. The father replies, “Great things have happened here, not just including sports.” The child pesters their dad to tell them what that means. The father goes on to tell his child about the best Phillies game he has ever seen.
“There were twenty thousand people there that day, and I was the most nervous. I didn't think that I could be more nervous than the players! I took your mother to that game. She was a Cubs fan, but I was bugging her for weeks to come to a Phillies game with me. During the seventh inning stretch, everyone stood up, but I dropped to one knee. I asked your mother to marry me that day, and it was the best day of my life.”
The child, young and naïve, asks why they got a divorce if he loved her so much. The father just took his child's hand and told him that sometimes things don't always work out as planned, but great things still happen. At the end of their little tour of the sports complex, they upload a photo to the booth to share this day, time, and place, to share with others to come and have their adventure.
This proposal of the Philadelphia Sports through History walking tour makes use of walkable space throughout the Sports Complex District. There would be no need to renovate a any particular place, just use the open space available. The walkable space in itself is not very large, and is very exciting and enticing to walk, as opposed to an intimidating, long walking tour, allowing people of all ages to enjoy.
This element of a close walking area is very important in the success of PSH. The idea of having the walk and the media booths so close to one another is vital in not only bringing people in to participate, but to give the feeling of a small, tight-knit community, which some would argue, to be a vital part of being in the City of Brotherly Love.
This Locative Narrative reminds me a lot of the Jeremy Hight article Views from Above: Locative Narrative and the Landscape. These activities act much like the blues record discussed, but instead of just reading the past grooves, it is able to record new groves for the next participants. The idea of the PSH tour does not change the space or area of the sports complex district, but simply enhances the history, value, and memories that have made this area so successful.
http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=103174934830393670385.000477f3c5f5a2dbe6811&t=h&z=16
Design Study 2 by Anthony Prentice
Introduction:
I decided to do my design study on some of the intriguing murals in Philadelphia. My tour is not so much of a circuit, as it starts you off at 17th and Green and ends inside of the Italian market. There was not so much of a reason to start at 17th and Green Street, as the mural that was originally there that I wanted to be a part of my study has been erased by the tearing down of a building, however there was still an equally interesting mural across the street from it. That being said, I wanted to end in the Italian Market because I feel thats one of the most interesting parts of Philadelphia, uniquely Philadelphia in fact (There are few open air markets left in the United States, none however as famous).
Map:
View Mural Art Philadelphia in a larger map
Communication:
Participants will use there cell phones and internet capable phones to blog about each mural they encounter. This is not so much about reading what is there about the mural, which is why there are no descriptions on any of the murals that you can pull up in the map. The way the participants interact is by making their own asumptions and narratives on the area through the use of an open source blog, much like a twitter or blogger account. The participant will view the murals as they go along, and send what they interpret of the mural to the site. How it makes them feel, what they think it does for the neighborhood, and the significance of the mural itself. Much like what they've done in the Toronto example, participants can either contribute, or take in, information about the mural. Very much like Wikipedia however not as patrolled and regulated.
Rules and Triggers:
Participants are encouraged to take their time and just follow the map, so there are not any rules such as only go up numbered streets or anything like we've done before. The walking tour is meant to take time, and people are able to go at their own pace. As far as trigger points, the Murals are all big enough that they can clearly be seen, therefore negating the need for any sort of trigger points other than the cross streets that are referenced in the map.
Narative:
The narrative for each place is in what others have contributed and what you can take from each mural. For example, when you look at the Wilt Chamberlain mural, you can read the interpretations that others have posted. You can also take time, step back, and make your own idea of the place around. There are no right or wrong narratives for this area. Factual information is not needed, just what the place does to you, how it moves you. These murals are meant for bringing meaning in and of themselves to the areas they occupy. Aside from urban rejuvanation, they are there as an art form, and the artist wants the people to take from that place an idea of that setting and that mural.
This whole Idea is meant to evoke a sense of urban pride in those around the city. Most of the time we drive by these works of art, barely taking notice of their meaning or importance in that area. I've even witnessed jokes about murals being in bad neighborhoods only. It's sad that people drive around and can't take in the beauty of what some of these murals represent, such as family, integration, and hope. Take some time, and look through some of the murals on the tour. Each trigger point on the map has pictures of the murals that are on the tour, and when one finishes the tour, they can take in the surrounding area of the Italian market and all that has to offer.
I decided to do my design study on some of the intriguing murals in Philadelphia. My tour is not so much of a circuit, as it starts you off at 17th and Green and ends inside of the Italian market. There was not so much of a reason to start at 17th and Green Street, as the mural that was originally there that I wanted to be a part of my study has been erased by the tearing down of a building, however there was still an equally interesting mural across the street from it. That being said, I wanted to end in the Italian Market because I feel thats one of the most interesting parts of Philadelphia, uniquely Philadelphia in fact (There are few open air markets left in the United States, none however as famous).
Map:
View Mural Art Philadelphia in a larger map
Communication:
Participants will use there cell phones and internet capable phones to blog about each mural they encounter. This is not so much about reading what is there about the mural, which is why there are no descriptions on any of the murals that you can pull up in the map. The way the participants interact is by making their own asumptions and narratives on the area through the use of an open source blog, much like a twitter or blogger account. The participant will view the murals as they go along, and send what they interpret of the mural to the site. How it makes them feel, what they think it does for the neighborhood, and the significance of the mural itself. Much like what they've done in the Toronto example, participants can either contribute, or take in, information about the mural. Very much like Wikipedia however not as patrolled and regulated.
Rules and Triggers:
Participants are encouraged to take their time and just follow the map, so there are not any rules such as only go up numbered streets or anything like we've done before. The walking tour is meant to take time, and people are able to go at their own pace. As far as trigger points, the Murals are all big enough that they can clearly be seen, therefore negating the need for any sort of trigger points other than the cross streets that are referenced in the map.
Narative:
The narrative for each place is in what others have contributed and what you can take from each mural. For example, when you look at the Wilt Chamberlain mural, you can read the interpretations that others have posted. You can also take time, step back, and make your own idea of the place around. There are no right or wrong narratives for this area. Factual information is not needed, just what the place does to you, how it moves you. These murals are meant for bringing meaning in and of themselves to the areas they occupy. Aside from urban rejuvanation, they are there as an art form, and the artist wants the people to take from that place an idea of that setting and that mural.
This whole Idea is meant to evoke a sense of urban pride in those around the city. Most of the time we drive by these works of art, barely taking notice of their meaning or importance in that area. I've even witnessed jokes about murals being in bad neighborhoods only. It's sad that people drive around and can't take in the beauty of what some of these murals represent, such as family, integration, and hope. Take some time, and look through some of the murals on the tour. Each trigger point on the map has pictures of the murals that are on the tour, and when one finishes the tour, they can take in the surrounding area of the Italian market and all that has to offer.
DESIGN STUDY #2 LIACOURAS WALK- A HISTORICAL WALK THROUGH TIME by JACOB WOOLF
View Design Study #2 Map- LIACOURAS WALK in a larger map
This walk will be an interactive and comprehensive view of the history of Liacouras Walk at Temple University from the early 20th century to present day. In the very beginning, the participants would text me on my cell phone saying they are ready to begin. When this happens, I would transfer them a list of voice recordings through MMS. Also, I would pix message them pictures of an old "Park Avenue" Atlas from 1904, as well as a recording describing that time period on LW.
What happens next is that each "trigger point" after this one has a historical picture of Liacouras walk, as well as the narration (which is on the participants' phone) relating to a particular time period and trigger point on the path. The trick is that these are sadly not in chronological order. The participants will have to, by using the narration as clues, at the end match up each picture and narration (numbered #1-#9) to its respective TIME PERIOD (as marked at each trigger point) in order to succeed, thus making it specific to each participant.
I should clarify. Here’s how it would play out. The participant walks up to the trigger point. They see a picture of that trigger point in some previous time in Temple’s history. They hear the narrative, which describes the time period of the picture and more importantly, its relation to images depicted in other pictures. For instance, one narration could say, “This is where Curtis Hall used to be before it was torn down to build Alter Hall. Curtis Hall was here before the kids gathered to speak about peace on Liacouras Walk, and even before the building of Founder’s Garden”. Then, in another narration, it could state, “This is Founder’s Garden. Founder’s Garden was built to commemorate Russell Conwell. It was built after Curtis and after color photos had already been popularized, but before LW was full of shops.” When they see the color picture, it will clue them in on where to place the picture of Founder’s Garden on the time line. This seems like it would be extremely difficult to match up, but even just by looking at the pictures you can gain and idea of when they are from based on cars/buildings.
With that in mind, I want to make it clear that there are a few choices I made specifically to convey meaning to the project. I wanted to make this walk seem like a trip through time, basically making the walkway a giant timeline. The choice to make the path not straight however comes from a couple of different reasons. The first reason is that most of the things that make Liacouras Walk what it is aren’t the walkway itself. Rather, it is the buildings that line it that tell a true story. The other more abstract reasoning behind it not being completely straight is that personally, I don’t see history as just a timeline. Rather, I see it as a crooked eternal path that takes us in several different directions. Some of these directions lead us in more severe ways than others however, which I have acknowledged by making the largest misdirection leading to Founder’s Park and the grave of Russell Conwell, for without him, Temple University would not exist today.
What I think is most interesting about my particular project is that its story is non-fiction, but still just as entertaining (at least in my opinion). I think it is fascinating to see how the same space has evolved over time, even just the past 100 years. What is even more fascinating is to think about the PEOPLE who inhabited these same places before us and how their actions shaped Temple into what it is today, but importantly, what they may have done to shape the world today. (Shout out to Bill Cosby)
Thusly, the narrator I chose to tell the story of Liacouras Walk was Carol Hamlin, who works at the Temple Archive, or Templar, where I got all of my pictures used for this project. I figured, hey who would better tell the story and history of this area better than the person who’s JOB it is to know about this area. She also was a really nice lady I think people would like to listen to. I also had the idea of having her at a couple of trigger points speaking of her own personal experience on Liacouras Walk. (These would both be added to the very end, and then would have to be figured out what time she was descrbing just based on the information…no pictures here.) I think by doing this it adds an ENTIRELY new level to the whole project, because when all is said and done, people are the ones who experience history, not the books in which they are written. The anecdotal aspect would also help solidify all the facts as a narrative, because we would be able to hear the experience of a real person in a different time period.
Furthermore, the reason I chose to make the participants put the timeline together themselves is because if it was just told to them in chronological order, it would just seem like a history text book. By making them participate in the creation of this giant timeline, it lets them participate in a form of art as well as participate in their own learning. This becomes apparent when they have to analyze the photos and documents in a way as to give them context without the pictures and documents screaming it in their face.
Because of the structure of this, with picking different times in history that are more general than specific, the overall “narrative” is more episodic than climactic, meaning it is merely telling of different events that are inter-related rather than all building up to one specific climax. However, while this seems like it would be more boring, I think the climax of the narrative is being able to match all of the pictures up correctly with their respective time period.
Here are the specific instructions for navigating Liacouras Walk during this:
1. Walk to the intersection of Liacouras Walk and Norris. Turn facing South.
2. Text Jake’s cell phone numbers saying you are ready to begin.
3. After receiving the pictures of the 1904 Atlas and narration voice recordings, make your way to the first trigger point, marked with a blue flag.
4. Once you have reached the trigger point, pick up the photo and play the recording. Take notes if you have to on specifics the narrator says to pick up on the time period.
5. When you reach the Seven Eleven, stop and read the news article. You can take this with you the rest of the way to help aid you when placing the items in chronological order.
6. Repeat Step #4 until you reach Montgomery Ave. Know some points will have more than one photo; that’s OK, just group them when applying them to a time period.
7. For the next step, you will have to take all the knowledge you know, and place the photos in order of their date taken, NOT the date built of the structures in the pictures. Since you know which narration goes with which photograph it should not be too difficult. Once you think you have put them in the correct order, dial Jake’s number and read off the order in which you placed them in by reading them off by the numbers on the back of the photos. You will be notified at this time whether or not you were successful.
8. BRAG TO YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT HOW MUCH YOU KNOW ABOUT FREAKIN LIACOURAS WALK. (I am not liable for the loss of friends).
Personally I think I have already assessed the project a couple times already, but I’ll formally do one now:
I would like to begin my assessment with the following Guy Debord quote: "All that was once directly lived has become mere representation." In my project, I think I prove this to be wrong. I say this because it refutes the idea that technology has made us unable to process human emotions without this medium of TV or movies. Now, while my project uses photographs, I think it is apparent how much interest and learning can come out of photos and historical evidence of a certain place. The documentation of these things it was draws us in and makes us feel emotions; it doesn’t stop it from happening. When you strip out the political motivations of movies and TV, and have someone like me who just wants people to learn about something objectively, technology is at its purest form: to simplify our life, not complicate it. In relation to the Janet Cardiff Readings, my project has a completely different style, but I think they both are effective. While hers is more expressionistic, mine is more expositional. While she wants to put you in the middle of this story she has created, my goal was to make you create your own story about the evolution of this great thing we have here at Temple University that has been the center of attention for so long.
Design Study 2
Trenton is not a very large city. One can easily navigate through the entire place in no time at all. The directions I took were inconvenient, but showed some interesting sites. The route I took is a unique route designed to portray all aspects of Trenton, NJ: the slums, the downtown, and areas of recreation, dinning, etc.
There are not so good areas of Trenton, but there are more areas that are nice. One can dine at one of the many restaurants while viewing the calm architecture of downtown which is dominated by clean bricks. The areas buildings are also influenced by the vast number of Catholic and Baptist churches in the region. Although the NJ Transit Center serves as a transportation station that I occasionally use to get to NYC, DC, or even here to Temple University, the facility was recently remodeled into an extremely prominent building with brilliant modern architecture that makes the place really stand out. The trains were also redone. My favorite place to eat is Matteo's Pizzeria, which is farther away from most of the excitement of the city. Not too far from the center city area is the Waterfront Park. I frequently visit this sports stadium which is home to the Trenton Thunder baseball team. My high school also held jazz performances outside of the stadium. Not far from Waterfront Park is a very large club called Kat Man Du. Both of these buildings attract large crowds every night, and are nice places to be especially at night because they are both right up against the Delaware river. Most areas along the river, in Trenton, are calm, relaxing, spots to chill out, fish, or just have a small picnic or something of that sort. Taking the boat out is also a fun thing to do. Anywhere you are on either side of the river, there are lots of places to see, restaurants to eat at, and fun things to do.
Trenton has lots of neat things to offer. There isn't just crime-infested neighbor-hoods where nobody wants to be. You can do a lot in this remarkably stereotyped city. Just like in Philadelphia, there are all sorts of structures that capture the interest, appetite, and recreation, of many people all day and all night. The river and the famous "Trenton Makes, The World Takes" bridge are very characteristic of this city which is alive as any other city at night time as well as during the day.
Rules and instructions.
Communicating was all made up of conversing with my friends and locals who helped us navigate around. We knew mostly where we were going, but it was interesting how there was such a diverse variety in the directions we were given by different people.
DESIGN STUDY #2 LIACOURAS WALK- A HISTORICAL WALK THROUGH TIME by JACOB WOOLF
Also special thanks to Carol Hamlin who basically helped me with ALL the info I got and used, including the pictures.
The embedding thing wasn't working out-so i attached a link here where the narrative is rough but i more explained then general idea of each trigger point so that it is understandable.
This walk will be an interactive and comprehensive view of the history of Liacouras Walk at Temple University from the early 20th century to present day. In the very beginning, the participants would text me on my cell phone saying they are ready to begin. When this happens, I would transfer them a list of voice recordings through MMS. Also, I would pix message them pictures of an old "Park Avenue" Atlas from 1904, as well as a recording describing that time period on LW.
What happens next is that each "trigger point" after this one has a historical picture of Liacouras walk, as well as the narration (which is on the participants' phone) relating to a particular time period and trigger point on the path. The trick is that these are sadly not in chronological order. The participants will have to, by using the narration as clues, at the end match up each picture and narration (numbered #1-#9) to its respective TIME PERIOD (as marked at each trigger point) in order to succeed, thus making it specific to each participant.
I should clarify. Here’s how it would play out. The participant walks up to the trigger point. They see a picture of that trigger point in some previous time in Temple’s history. They hear the narrative, which describes the time period of the picture and more importantly, its relation to images depicted in other pictures. For instance, one narration could say, “This is where Curtis Hall used to be before it was torn down to build Alter Hall. Curtis Hall was here before the kids gathered to speak about peace on Liacouras Walk, and even before the building of Founder’s Garden”. Then, in another narration, it could state, “This is Founder’s Garden. Founder’s Garden was built to commemorate Russell Conwell. It was built after Curtis and after color photos had already been popularized, but before LW was full of shops.” When they see the color picture, it will clue them in on where to place the picture of Founder’s Garden on the time line. This seems like it would be extremely difficult to match up, but even just by looking at the pictures you can gain and idea of when they are from based on cars/buildings.
With that in mind, I want to make it clear that there are a few choices I made specifically to convey meaning to the project. I wanted to make this walk seem like a trip through time, basically making the walkway a giant timeline. The choice to make the path not straight however comes from a couple of different reasons. The first reason is that most of the things that make Liacouras Walk what it is aren’t the walkway itself. Rather, it is the buildings that line it that tell a true story. The other more abstract reasoning behind it not being completely straight is that personally, I don’t see history as just a timeline. Rather, I see it as a crooked eternal path that takes us in several different directions. Some of these directions lead us in more severe ways than others however, which I have acknowledged by making the largest misdirection leading to Founder’s Park and the grave of Russell Conwell, for without him, Temple University would not exist today.
What I think is most interesting about my particular project is that its story is non-fiction, but still just as entertaining (at least in my opinion). I think it is fascinating to see how the same space has evolved over time, even just the past 100 years. What is even more fascinating is to think about the PEOPLE who inhabited these same places before us and how their actions shaped Temple into what it is today, but importantly, what they may have done to shape the world today. (Shout out to Bill Cosby)
Thusly, the narrator I chose to tell the story of Liacouras Walk was Carol Hamlin, who works at the Temple Archive, or Templar, where I got all of my pictures used for this project. I figured, hey who would better tell the story and history of this area better than the person who’s JOB it is to know about this area. She also was a really nice lady I think people would like to listen to. I also had the idea of having her at a couple of trigger points speaking of her own personal experience on Liacouras Walk. (These would both be added to the very end, and then would have to be figured out what time she was descrbing just based on the information…no pictures here.) I think by doing this it adds an ENTIRELY new level to the whole project, because when all is said and done, people are the ones who experience history, not the books in which they are written. The anecdotal aspect would also help solidify all the facts as a narrative, because we would be able to hear the experience of a real person in a different time period.
Furthermore, the reason I chose to make the participants put the timeline together themselves is because if it was just told to them in chronological order, it would just seem like a history text book. By making them participate in the creation of this giant timeline, it lets them participate in a form of art as well as participate in their own learning. This becomes apparent when they have to analyze the photos and documents in a way as to give them context without the pictures and documents screaming it in their face.
Because of the structure of this, with picking different times in history that are more general than specific, the overall “narrative” is more episodic than climactic, meaning it is merely telling of different events that are inter-related rather than all building up to one specific climax. However, while this seems like it would be more boring, I think the climax of the narrative is being able to match all of the pictures up correctly with their respective time period.
Here are the specific instructions for navigating Liacouras Walk during this:
1. Walk to the intersection of Liacouras Walk and Norris. Turn facing South.
2. Text Jake’s cell phone numbers saying you are ready to begin.
3. After receiving the pictures of the 1904 Atlas and narration voice recordings, make your way to the first trigger point, marked with a blue flag.
4. Once you have reached the trigger point, pick up the photo and play the recording. Take notes if you have to on specifics the narrator says to pick up on the time period.
5. When you reach the Seven Eleven, stop and read the news article. You can take this with you the rest of the way to help aid you when placing the items in chronological order.
6. Repeat Step #4 until you reach Montgomery Ave. Know some points will have more than one photo; that’s OK, just group them when applying them to a time period.
7. For the next step, you will have to take all the knowledge you know, and place the photos in order of their date taken, NOT the date built of the structures in the pictures. Since you know which narration goes with which photograph it should not be too difficult. Once you think you have put them in the correct order, dial Jake’s number and read off the order in which you placed them in by reading them off by the numbers on the back of the photos. You will be notified at this time whether or not you were successful.
8. BRAG TO YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT HOW MUCH YOU KNOW ABOUT FREAKIN LIACOURAS WALK. (I am not liable for the loss of friends).
Personally I think I have already assessed the project a couple times already, but I’ll formally do one now:
I would like to begin my assessment with the following Guy Debord quote: "All that was once directly lived has become mere representation." In my project, I think I prove this to be wrong. I say this because it refutes the idea that technology has made us unable to process human emotions without this medium of TV or movies. Now, while my project uses photographs, I think it is apparent how much interest and learning can come out of photos and historical evidence of a certain place. The documentation of these things it was draws us in and makes us feel emotions; it doesn’t stop it from happening. When you strip out the political motivations of movies and TV, and have someone like me who just wants people to learn about something objectively, technology is at its purest form: to simplify our life, not complicate it. In relation to the Janet Cardiff Readings, my project has a completely different style, but I think they both are effective. While hers is more expressionistic, mine is more expositional. While she wants to put you in the middle of this story she has created, my goal was to make you create your own story about the evolution of this great thing we have here at Temple University that has been the center of attention for so long.
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