Shapes of Time

Time receptacles.

Shapes of Time explores the duality between “clock time” and “lived time”. The project transposes the temporal perceptions of several individuals into ceramics and glass, confronting them to highlight the relativity of subjective time.

As part of a study carried out in a shared environment, a dozen participants were invited to spend a day without access to the usual time reference points. On several occasions they were spontaneously asked to express their feelings about the passage of time and the perceived time of day. The data collected in this way was used to generate unique time curves specific to each individual.

Using a revolution modelling process, these curves were transposed into backlit receptacles. Throughout the day, each container is fed drop by drop with a volume of water corresponding to the time of the clocks. The level of water in each container varies according to the rhythms, creating a tension between measured and experienced temporality. The diffraction of light through the water and glass shapes creates an immersive and dreamlike atmosphere, reinforcing the sensory experience of the passage of time.

“ Everything that has its own energy has its own temporality. ”
Albert Einstein, 1922

🤝 Commissioned by the Fabrica Research Institute

🖼️ Later Came Early exhibition in the chapel of the Fabrica Institute (Treviso 2022)