The art of remembering: unleash the labyrinth of memory
In my art series “Memory Falsification”, I delve into the fascinating world of memories, an area that is shaped by scientific findings as much as by personal experience. Science offers us unique insights into how our memory works and inspires me to interpret these processes artistically.
Neuropsychological studies show that our ability to remember is surprisingly limited. A study by Ebbinghaus, a pioneer in memory research, revealed the “forgetting curve”, which states that people forget on average 40% of what they have learned within 20 minutes and lose almost 70% after 24 hours if there is no repetition or active recall (Ebbinghaus, 1885). My art captures this fleeting nature of our memories by depicting the transience and selective clarity of our past.
Furthermore, research has shown that emotional events leave a deeper trace in our memory. A study by McGaugh (2000) shows that emotional arousal strengthens the consolidation of memories, which explains why certain moments in our lives seem indelible. In my works, I use intense colors and dynamic structures to symbolize these emotionally charged memories that are anchored in our minds.
Another fascinating phenomenon is “false memory”, which has been studied in work such as that of Loftus and Palmer (1974). They showed how easily memories can be manipulated by suggestive questioning, which often leads to distorted or completely false memories. This fragility and manipulability of our memories is reflected in the blurred and overlapping design of my artworks, which represent the blurred boundaries between reality and reconstruction.
My art is a reflection on these scientific findings, a visual exploration of how our memory works, how it fails us and how it shapes our identity. By combining scientific research with artistic interpretation, I invite the viewer to contemplate the complexity and beauty of our memories – and to accept that our past is not always a true reflection of reality, but a mixture of facts, feelings and our brain’s endless capacity for reinvention.
Sources:
- Ebbinghaus, H. (1885). About memory. Studies in experimental psychology.
- McGaugh, J.L. (2000). Memory–a century of consolidation. Science, 287(5451), 248-251.
- Loftus, E.F., & Palmer, J.C. (1974). Reconstruction of automobile destruction: An example of the interaction between language and memory. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 13(5), 585-589.
Why only women? The deeper level in ‘Memory Falsification’!
In my picture series “Memory Falsification”, I made a conscious decision:
Each picture exclusively depicts women as the main characters.
This artistic choice not only reflects an aesthetic preference, but is also a reaction to a specific problem in the field of artificial intelligence as it exists at the beginning of 2024. It was found that ChatGPT gave better results when she was told that she was a man. This trend was based on a historical data set that reflected gender biases embedded in the population and the underlying technologies.
This problem, which highlights a past state of technology, served me as a reason for creative resistance.
By exclusively featuring women in “Memory Falsification”, I not only want to highlight the need to overcome gender bias in AI systems, but also express hope and optimism that equality – which is already embedded in the minds of most people – will eventually find its way into our systems and technologies.
This approach is an attempt to reflect on the past while shaping a future in which the diversity and equality of all genders is fully recognized and integrated in all aspects of our lives, including technology. With “Memory Falsification” I set a sign of hope and progress by celebrating the beauty, strength and depth of female narratives and perspectives.
So that we can still remember it in the distant future.
