Ghost Chair

I made this prototype as a twofold experiment, one to practice using the laser cutter, and two to put me theories into an object to see how it comes across. I don't know what Iv been doing for the last few weeks, because apart from this, I don't really have much to show for it, So I decided that Id better get my work on.

The chair carries forward my ideas of the fetishisation and commodification of antiques, objects with a story etc. The way in which people crave an embedded history in their items as a way of justifying their lifestyle. Objects are no longer just objects etc. And when people move to the countryside, they are surrounded by a field of simulacrum that appears to be filled with history, and meaning. And meaning is generally a commodity polarised in the towns, the truly historic is behind glass, and the modern commodified items are in casual abundance. So moving to the country, a common reaction to this newfound "meaningful" lifestyle is to surround and be enveloped in meaning.

And I guess this reaction is regarded as a general love for the past and collecting, but on a more inquisitive level, I would like to observe it as a method of justification; the history embedded within the items emit a glow of authenticity. The collector gets a sense of pride from this nostalgia; they are effectively living the dream, and this material ownership offers a sense of authenticity, heritage, pride.

"This desire to possess material fragments of people and places that have been important to us seems to be on the increase. According to this way of thinking, an object no longer simply embodies its material value; what counts is the narrative in which it becomes embedded. What matters about the gravy boat that went for £2,100 is not that it was hammered out in the reign of George III, but that the Queen of Crime herself once dribbled it over her Sunday lunch.

Fetishising mundane objects like this is one of the many byproducts of living in an age of virtuality. By making light work of sending images - copies, in effect - around the world, the internet actually increases the mystique and value of the original object, which can be viewed only in one place at one time. According to this way of thinking, there may be hundreds of pictures of Agatha Christie's gravy boat proliferating in public space, but there is still only one solid artefact, now in the hands of its delighted new owner."
Kathryn Hughes, The Guardian

I think the chair embodies my feelings towards this. The image of a farm chair has been etched into the plastic, creating a warped sense of the antique. The objective is to regain a sense of appropriateness. Although the user desires the aesthetic of everything looking old, the chair is obviously very modern. The historic, nostalgic aspect is embedded into its sentiment rather than its physicality, creating a much more fitting artefact. The chair is new, but it wants to be an old established chair, reflecting the intended users desire for the past to come to life, but is inherently modern and imposes an air of it simply being a cosmetic modification.

So the user would accept their modernity, without letting go of their longing for the past.

Any comments then feel free to suggest them.