Equivocal

Equivocal is a sensory workshop conducted in Chelsea College of Art and Design, UK, where participants were asked to match images with textures, smells, sounds and sight. It presents a series of photographs of objects taken in different angles and perspectives. Participants were asked to discuss how each imagine would be sensorially experienced. The international diversity of students provided a range of answers that surprisingly evoked plot lines and other narratives specific to different cultures. Responses often evoked situational moments that were highly imaginative, such as: "... this guy just broke up with his girlfriend, so he went to buy a tub of kimchi to drown his sorrows. In his sadness, he dropped a piece and picked it up with their hands. He then touched the surface and the smell [of kimchi] on his fingers made it stained red and smell like tears and kimchi.". The site-specificity of this project played an important role in the responses. Because it was conducted in an art school with students studying creative subjects, responses were much more imaginative and atypical. Imaginative equivocality became especially clear in the diverse responses to the experience, hence inspiring the premise and title of the work.