msdm: mobile strategies of display & mediation

The notion that memories became the basic form of substituting the events, which are suspended with the growth of industrialization, is almost unquestionable. However with the growth of the ‘knowledge industry’ as the latest stage of the global formation of memory, this has become part and parcel of ‘instrumentalised reason’. In contrast with ancient times, where memory was a main source of intelligence, with the invention of the printing technique memory became its ubiquitous alternative, continuously disrupting the industrialization.

In the 20th century however, memory itself became industrialized. With the early examples of memoirs of stars being published it has gradually grown into the ‘global industry’. Since the relationship between nations, races and histories has been negotiated through memories of witnesses and survivors this in itself produced the legitimacy of history.Speaking of the growth of industrialization, it has become impossible to ignore it’s main source, which creates the triangle: work, labor and life. Moving from manufacturing to automatisation, from full time to occasional labour, we do often come across people whose lives have been affected by this process, but since work is the dominant part of life it keeps returning in memories of those who lost their jobs and lived the rest of life by only remembering it.

Paula Roush’s new project set up in Coleman Project Space, in Bermondsey London is a direct engagement with this practice. This consists in ‘building a new memory factory in place of the former Peek Frean’s Biscuit Factory, announced as ‘a reopening of the factory for one week only as a memory factory’ in order ‘to investigate the utopian potential of placing the discourse on globalisation of memory at the intersection of tourism, urban renewal and cultural property rights’. The project carefully investigates the factory’s history and establishes with the later generation of factory workers, who participated in the workshops in order to license their memories under special conditions, since the memory factory is open as a bureau for memory work.

Participants arrived with memorabilia which filled the project space turning it into a very interesting show, consisting of selected photos, clothing, gifts, books, films, sound samples and journal entries that mapped the space of memory. The further step was the ‘licensing of these memories following the creative commons deed in order to offer some of them to the cultural memory market’. Can the ‘immaterial labor’ be understood as the one existing as a memory bearer by the one who turns it into the cultural artifact? Interestingly enough, instead of ending the project of capitalism ‘by digging it’s own grave, the pre-eminent form of ‘knowledge industry’ expands it to the global degree and creates the spectacle where life and work are seen as one.

The biopolitical subject is endlessly reminded that there is no more dividing line between work and leisure. They are constantly articulated and there is only the ‘pleasure of work’. No matter whether you are employed or unemployed, your value is is based on your memorie’s value. The’memory factory’ in this case becomes the subject of ‘artistic thought in order to problematise this paradox.

This event is an interesting continuation of Roush’s ongoing research on work, labor and the transformation of these themes during the global cultural industry.

Zeigam Azizov, London