Natalie Harper Unit 18 _ Living amongst the dead
THE HYBRIDISED HOME
Homemaking in Cairo’s Necropolis.
PART ONE - THE GREY
the queer territories of the grey
Hybridized Home Series 1
This series of work explored the territory of “the Grey”. I choose to explore this region of my life due to my mixed heritage and undefined identity as a black - colored young Woman. Being neither nor culturally, traditionally and racially, I questioned societies outlook on diversity and the effects of it on all dimensions. I used the past and present to conduct some of my research and my own experiences as baseline sources to drive the narrative of the grey.
GREY SYSTEM THEORY
A grey system means that a system in which part of information is known and part of information is unknown. With this definition, information quantity and quality form a continuum from a total lack of information to complete information – from black through grey to white
Indeterminate territory, undefined position, neither here nor there. For example, there’s a large grey area between what is legal and what is not. This term, which uses grey in the sense of “neither black nor white” (or halfway between the two), dates only from the mid-1900's.
The purpose of this series was to introduce the elementary concepts and principles found in the exploration of grey systems and the main components of grey systems theory. Also to discuss the work in progress that this key theme has underlined through intuitive learning, wide-ranging applications and methodologies in project expression and communication through experimentation
"the grey"
mixed heritage
The piece that isn’t shapely, elegant, and simple. The half that’s ugly, heavy, abrasive.
Toe-tourniquet syndrome is a rare and commonly misdiagnosed condition caused by a hair or a fibre wrapped around digits (fingers and toes).I am a patient of this. I conducted this experiment in the approach of investigating my identity as my phantom limb being that which I call “The Grey”. Reflecting from my imbalanced anatomy and an imbalance in my mixed heritage, I created a phantom shoe.
"in its form"
Foil, CD discs, old shoes socks, pins, glue, old shoe lace
1. AN INSTITUTE - society, heritage and imbalance
2. ELEMENT – the foot, shoe design
3. QUALITY- a reflective nature, weird looking, retro futuristic
v&a shoes
"the grey"
video clip of phantom on
unequal scenes
tapestry of tin city
“New Home”- Khayalisha ,Cape town
In Cape Town, Khayelitsha the name means Our New Home in the Bantu language is thelargest of these settlements, known nationally as townships. Of various types, the settlementsare usually made of shacks built of sheet metal over wooden frames fixed to the ground
woven loom
Experimentnig with the textiles of wool and cotton
tapestry tale
future remnants
collection of materials for tapestry
intricacy in the detail of a second hand/old cloth
​White mesh, second hand clothes, glue, wool, carpet, egg carton
1. AN INSTITUTE – the landscape
2. ELEMENT – “the grey area” – unequal scenes of spatial segregation
3. QUALITY- a grey fusion of materials illustrated into a tapestry of a landscape
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grey areas
My desire with this exploration is to portray the most Unequal Scenes around the world as objectively as possible. By providing a new perspective on an old problem, I hope to provoke a dialogue which can begin to address the issues of inequality and disenfranchisement in a constructive and peaceful way.
home in isolation
grey matter
illusions
isolation
NUMBER FOUR
Some prisoners were incarcerated in Number Four's isolation cells for months at a time
" home in a box"
Due to the nature of the work for this exploration, the experimentation and demonstration of control between which items are conveyed, and which items may be altered, in a process of representation in digital space. I Considered institute of Constitutional hill and the architectural element present is the Isolation cell.
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Digital drawings of 24 Distortions & GIF ANIMATION VIDEO
1. AN INSTITUTE – Constitutional hill
2. ELEMENT – the isolation cell
3. QUALITY- 24 distortions of the isolation cell from rhino 6 software, in grey scale.
"grey matter"
“Not only is the mental Illness an expression though these distortions but also the iterative
process of the Gravity Fatigue”.
distortions in time
Produced is a set of different models which show the occupants relationship to space in 24 distortions.
Commands were of a few, space scaled, moved, shrunk and pulled. The most extreme punishment was to be placed in one of the isolation cells.
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Prisoners spent 23 hours a day in these cells on a diet of rice water. They could officially be held there for 30 days but some spent over a year in these cells.
strange fruit
authentically - artificial
Artificial/plastic fruit as props, video editing and techniques in replication of
references used to produce a short film.
strange fruit
A film that plays on the concept of artificial and real fruits that travels through the city. As the film vogues us through the different scenes and spaces of the city, we are educated on the different spatial hierarchies- informal and formal architecture through the city. Through the use of various video techniques and camera angles,
one indulges on a journey through” the eyes” of theatrical fruits _lemon and orange.
bree taxi rank,Johannesburg
stills from forbidden fruit by toya delazy music video
