MEMORY MUSEUM
The tangible and intangible architecture of spaces gas the power to transport us to a different time and place. The Memory Museum is a collection of spaces with carefully curated light and spatial qualities that aim to transport visitors to their childhood. It encourages them to forget the preconceptions of and worries of adulthood, and have unbridled emotional experiences. It hopes to capture the magic of the mundane
+APROACH
Located in the Salt Flats the Dome of the Memory Museum appears to be otherwordly as if it’s appeared there all of a sudden. When it rains the entire Salt Flats are covered with a thin layer of water that creates a perfect reflection. The reflected dome creates the illusion of a floating sphere that feels as if it could disappear into thin air at any moment. The already alien landscape of the Salt Flats and the ephemeral form of the museum encourages visitors to start suspending their disbelief and prepare them to enjoy the experiences inside the museum.
+MEMORIES
Emboldened and amazed by the space, she confidently moved into the next room, greeting a teddy bear from her childhood bedroom. Behind the door, distorted shadows were waiting to attack, leaving her reeling with fear.
Foraging on she was embraced by a field of drapes. She moved a drape aside only to be greeted by another and another behind it. With all the brilliant colors billowing in the wind, she was sure creatures were hiding in their folds. She parted the drapes to make way, and they fluttered back in retaliation. She didn't find a companion, but she was sure she could find whatever lived here if explored more carefully or perhaps sang a serenade the next time.
Apprehensively she entered into dark vaulted space, with only colliding shafts of light streaming in from atypical openings. First, she saw a telescope and remembered the tales of battles between the gods and monsters. She remembered the feeling of looking up at the stars for the first time.
The next space made her heart race as she tentatively placed one foot into space, looking down at the steep fall below. Internally berating herself for daring to venture out for such an impractical exploration, she cautiously walked forwards. Soon enough, she was prancing about until she sat down. Noticing the dappled light, she felt a sense of tranquility and wondered if this was the magic she'd lost
A bewildering blue light glowed from the next space, and the light danced gracefully, catching every nuance of the sun. She thought of a summer day many years ago, where she'd been exploring the depths of the ocean below, but she was confident she'd never been. Thrilled but perplexed by the experience, she moved onwards.
+FORM
+NARRATIVE
She put up a façade of contentment like everyone else in bloc x, but she couldn't help but a sense of emptiness after she'd been appointed as the Surveyor at the Ceremony of Assignments. She longed for the magic of her life before the Ceremony, and she saw the same Saudade mirrored in dull eyes around the bloc.
As she drove out to the Salt Flats, she tried not to think about how pointless her life felt, convincing herself everyone felt the same way about their assignments. After all, adult life wasn't about finding beauty or meaning; it was about survival and practicality.
She looked towards the horizon shocked by a mysterious sphere that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. She didn't know what came over her, but she felt compelled to abandon her daily survey route and drive towards it.
As she got closer, she saw that the object was a dome; last night’s rain left a reflective pool creating the illusion of an impossible sphere. Nonetheless, the concrete dome was impressive and seemingly impenetrable. It reminded her of a bunker she'd read about in history books. Circling the dome, she found a recessed aperture. Apprehensively she entered into dark vaulted space, with only colliding shafts of light streaming in from atypical openings.
First, she saw a telescope and remembered the tales of battles between the gods and monsters. She remembered the feeling of looking up at the stars for the first time. Emboldened and amazed by the space, she confidently moved into the next room, greeting a teddy bear from her childhood bedroom. Behind the door, distorted shadows were waiting to attack, leaving her reeling with fear.
A bewildering blue light glowed from the next space, and the light danced gracefully, catching every nuance of the sun. She thought of a summer day many years ago, where she'd been exploring the depths of the ocean below, but she was confident she'd never been. Thrilled but perplexed by the experience, she moved onwards.
The next space made her heart race as she tentatively placed one foot into space, looking down at the steep fall below. Internally berating herself for daring to venture out for such an impractical exploration, she cautiously walked forwards. Soon enough, she was prancing about until she sat down. Noticing the dappled light, she felt a sense of tranquility and wondered if this was the magic she'd lost. Foraging on she was embraced by a field of drapes. She moved a drape aside only to be greeted by another and another behind it. With all the brilliant colors billowing in the wind, she was sure creatures were hiding in their folds. She parted the drapes to make way, and they fluttered back in retaliation. She didn't find a companion, but she was sure she could find whatever lived here if explored more carefully or perhaps sang a serenade the next time.
Before she knew it, she was at the end of the tunnel; she followed a narrow spiral ramp down. Suddenly harsh rays of the noon sun directly overhead hit her. She blinked a couple of times, allowing her eyes to adjust, and she was there; it was again the greyness she'd gotten so accustomed to. She wondered if she could go back and live in the brilliantly magical spaces forever. Even the room of nightmares, anything fantastical to let her escape from the mundanity of daily life. When she turned around, she couldn't find the ramp to go back into the spaces. Perplexed, she realized she had no choice but to move forwards.
She saw a conical shape with holes punctured out, pointing at the heavens. Was that space? The one with the twinkling streams of light, really only the experience of looking at the stars? No, it couldn't be she looked at the stars every night; there was nothing magical about them. She dismissed the thought and glanced at a dull grey cube, reminding her of her quarters at bloc x. As she got closer, she saw some toys illuminated from below, casting shadows into the space. The toys were harmless, a teddy bear, a toy plane, and a tinker bot, but she saw a resemblance between their profiles and the monsters inside the room. Were the monsters just a figment of her imagination? How did she allow herself to fall for tricks of the light? Oh well, it had been years since she'd been terrified like that. Now the only time he felt fear was anxiety about daily life politics, and she decided she'd much rather be scared by shadow monsters. Then she saw her deep-sea adventure had simply been a foray into the depths of the community pool. The billowing sails were simply drapes hanging from clotheslines on a balcony. She remembered how her mother had scolded her for running on the wet floor, but she'd forgotten what a magical journey it had been. The dappled canopy had just been a reminder of all the trees she’d climbed in her youth. She'd stopped doing it the day she got her assignment, for it was far too childish an endeavor. But she couldn't deny that skirting through the canopy had been the most fun she'd had in a long while. If climbing a tree was that joy and tranquility all in one, screw convention, she'd climb one every day.
And then it struck her this was the magic that everyone longed to feel again. It wasn't magic at all. It was simply the joy of childhood. It was about approaching even the most mundane of experiences with a sense of awe and wonder.