I live in Lewisham, on the 29th floor of a towering 35 storey building, providing me with an uninterrupted view of London. When I moved to London, I had to quarantine for 12 days. My window was the only gateway to London; it helped create a bond between me and my environment. Therefore, I chose my window as the site to explore for this project.
I started by noting down my initial thoughts about my window –
1. Provides a sense of comfort and ease
2. Gateway to the outside world
3. Brings in fresh morning air and sunlight
4. Withstands the climate and keeps the cold and damp out
5. Following the sun and the seasons
6. Using the handles to hang my clothes and bags
Over the first week, I started taking pictures of various parts of the window at different times of the day. I noticed paint spots, lint, and watermarks on and around the window.
Apart from photographic observation, I also recorded some auditory observations. Placing my phone on the ridge of the window sill, I recorded the sounds from both sides of the window. I noticed certain similarities between the two recordings – the sound of the train passing by, the beeping of the construction cranes, and some static.
However, nothing about the audio recordings surprised me. It was pretty much what I expected to hear. I realised the photographic observations were more intriguing and worth experimenting with for the next phase.