Nietzsche
said, 'Without forgetting it is quite impossible to live at
all.' Yet, the tension remains: between the desire to forget,
and the instinct that you cannot, should not or do
not want to forget.
// thingsiwanttoforget.com //
Through this project we investigate memory and its relation to life
by inviting people to forget. We see forgetting not in
simplistic terms of complete erasure to a blank slate, but
rather the mind consciously reframing past, present
and future. A process of meditation is initiated.
This Museum of "forgotten" memories is an
archive of the experiences we think we want to let go.
How are personal histories individually and collectively
curated?
Many of us try to forget in our own ways everyday- from petty
grudges, unintended mistakes, human flaws, to deep
personal sufferings. Scientists are researching ways to
manipulate, re-wire or fade memories, using drugs and
psychotherapy. However, in order to begin any process
of forgetting, these patients must first voluntarily
identify and intensely recall the very experiences they want to
forget.
This Museum offers a site for that hopeful process, and
we are inviting you to be
part of this experiment. This is not a call for amnesia;
instead it is an acknowledgment that with greater attention to
how individual and collective memories are shaped, we can
change our relationship to history, present, and future.
Submissions
We are looking for electronic contributions of things you
want to forget- despite any instinct that you cannot,
should not or do not want to.
We will archive them in the Museum, erasing traces of
their origins in the hope that they may find release. They can
be: your written accounts; voice recordings; photographs, drawings
or images of any form.
For voice recordings and images, please send
in a note or account of less than 100 words. Please
limit written accounts to 300
words.
We offer no guarantees or refunds but an exchange. In
return for every contribution, we will personally craft and post
you another anonymously contributed artifact from the Museum,
one that we hope speaks to your own desires and will aid in your
process of renewal. This is optional; we could also leave you
alone.
Please send the Things You Want to Forget to [email protected],
with your snail mail address (optional). By
participating, you are allowing us to reproduce the contributed
material in any form -in print, film, online, or any other form-
for the purposes of this project. Major edits will be checked
with you before publication.
We look forward to your contribution. Here's to excavations,
burials and renewal.
Sincerely,
Museum Archaeologists