A brief inquiry on my digital traces is as a brief visual and verbal essay on the traces I have left in my past and rediscovered through algorithmic tools. The diary presents a mixture of materials, that follow the miscellaneous nature of the disconnected memories we have of our past, but that at the same time result to be so important and vital.
Metaphor used:
The most straightforward metaphor to express this project has turned out to be that of a similar-Atlas diary. In the past, to keep track of this type of data, it was necessary to write journals that had an inherently miscellaneous nature due to the variety of content (collages, annotations, etc.). Similarly, here, where the data from one platform is insufficient to tell the story of a certain period, the data from another platform is. This has allowed me to reconstruct my past in its most straightforward and everyday aspects.
Intended Meaning:
The reflection from which this work arises is that if it weren't for the presence of some digital platforms, my ability to remember past habits, spaces, people, and relationships would be significantly less. The communication objective, therefore, is to expose this experience and make the user empathize with my discovery of my past through simple and everyday elements, which become just an example of something universal.
Source:
The selected data refer to my experience and my personal life in terms of spaces where I have been living in the last years, including habits and communications with friends and relatives. In particular, the dataset contains data gathered on: a. Google Maps, through which I have traces my movements in time; b. WhatsApp, on which all my text messages are available since 2016; (c.) Personal hard disk, containing images and videos stored in these years.
