Preserving for the future history

A new project by KOLEKTIVA In(Visible) Traces was exhibited as installation in a public space of the city Ptuj, Slovenia on December 22, 2009.

The project deals with the traces our civilization will leave for the future. What kind of things will we leave behind? Will our time be remembered by cultural and aesthetic objects (the way we remember the past) or by technological trash which won’t dissolve for a very long time? Can we compare beautiful ancient decoration and preserved household objects with our modern domestic objects which are predominantly based on technology? Will the future generations share fascination in the remains of our time as we are fascinated in archaeological remains of the past?

With Andy Warhol and his time capsules in mind we decided to preserve some paraphernalia of our time. We bottled wires, batteries, keyboard, mobile phone, digital camera, hard disc, light bulbs…

The installation in public space of Ptuj was a symbolic gesture to mark possible spots of future archaeological findings. Ptuj is the oldest city in Slovenia, dating back to the Stone Age. History and rich archaeological sites form a strong part of the identity of the city. Because of its reach history the city is a perfect location for our project in order to help us hold the mirror up to modern consumerism.