68.
05:46
neighbourhood
001 hanging laundry
about:
5 sentences (simple and random facts) from a compiled interview hung in neon-coloured line to represent the laundry people hang
the idiom air your dirty laundry in public means to talk about things that should be kept private
in a way, it acts as a 'showcase' for the neighbours to know someone more, even if it is just by a small piece of information
how:
relationships in the basic form = conversation/communication
eg. you can infer the type of person living in the household from the clothes hung outside their home, but you may not know their real story
subject:
housing and development block (hdb) has this system where each block has an ethnic integration policy to promote racial integration and harmony
hdb corridors have always been interesting to me. the sense of belonging and shared living system makes it a great subject to highlight. do these neighbours know each other?
there are a few ways where laundries are dried in hdb; in their own homes in balconies or hanging racks or outside of their homes, at the back of the home or at the corridor
corridor itself has its significance of being the location where neighbours pass by each other eunos crescent estate was chosen due to the vantage point of the whole exterior being seen from the block across. one may observe the movement of the people and the features of the block. things such as flower pots, shoe racks, furnitures and clothes are placed outside, as decoration and convenience
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block 17 eunos crescent
23 jan 2016, 1.30pm
"i work in a bank"
a mid-40s chinese man
who has 2 adjoining flats who was hanging out at the corridor
"i have four siblings"
an early 30s indian
lady who lived there with her sister, and has another sister living in
kembangan
"i was from rochor centre"
a late 30s chinese
man who just lived at the block from 1 and a half years
"i have lived here since the 70s"
a 60 year-old malay
grandmother who was speaking on the phone while having a conversation with me
"i don't know my neighbours"
an early 20s chinese
girl who was having lunch with her brother while watching a drama on the laptop
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this project was inspired by Peyton Fulford's Abandoned Love series. a participatory art project on tumblr where people submitted 'secrets' and she hung them at abandoned places and "materialize a private moment by sharing it publicly"
ps: couldn't have make this project a reality if not for izwah bani for keeping me company and being my model for my recce trip. to denise lum for accompanying me and being behind the camera while i 'interviewed' the neighbours at the other block and for giving me assurance when i needed it. to joshua giam for being the one to hang the letters on your off day with direct sun shining on your face and for being such a prim and proper person(!!!). to my sister hanee for helping me draw and cut all the letters from scratch. sending many love over
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