Collecting Memories - Advanced Interaction

“As you set out for Ithaka
hope the voyage is a long one,
full of adventure, full of discovery…”

Ithaka, C.P.Cavafy

In the multicultural world of the 21^st century, modern societies consist of numerous backgrounds bound together. Each one of us – traveler, immigrant, refugee – carries with him his whole life in a luggage. Apart from the material aspect of our lives though, we carry the most precious artifacts that define us: our memories. Thus, “Collecting Memories” is a project aiming to materialize our most valuable luggage.

An old suitcase is transformed into a browser of memories which materializes them into visual and audio stimuli. Each user has the chance to experience once again his own memories in a different context, as holographic projections combined with sounds. Memories though are a pretty complex field of human existence. Since there is not any known technology that can extract personal memories, this project focused mainly on the collective memories. As collective memories we identify the sum of personal memories that are shared in common by a large population.

Thus, each user gets the chance to browse through these collective memories, organized by decades, through a simple interface. Face motion capture (FMoCap) technique through kinect is used to link a holographic face projected in the suitcase with the face of the user. Additionally, the user gets the chance to travel through the decades by touching capacitive sensors on a remote control. The collective memories of each decade are then mapped on the holographic face of the user, accompanied by sound clips.