The Swing
Swing set, fishing net, stone from Seydisfjordur, stone from Reykjavic, audio.
Site specific installation
Shown as part of 'Lunga Festival', Seydisfjordur, iceland, 2015.
Upon bargaining for materials around Seydisfjordur, Iceland, I ended up with an old swing set and a fishing net from a boat scrap yard. The swing set once belonged to Signy, a 16 year old girl working at the yard for her father. Upon learning that she would soon be moving to Reykjavik, to study furniture design, I decided to make an object from the materials I had, materials which were full of memories for both Signy and her Father.
The mobile is designed so that the central part can be detached and taken away by Signy as she moves forward with her life, whilst the outer part can stay behind at the factory with Signy’s father.
Audio
Signy’s father:
‘It was for my daughters,
I buy it special for my daughters.
Yeah, thirteen, fourteen, thirteen years ago.’
Signy:
‘Erm, i got my swings, erm, I don’t really know, I think it was when I was three or five years old.
Erm, it was huge, the swings that I got from my dad, it was humongous, it was green and red and there were like two swings, and one was for two and one was for only one person, and yeah.
Erm, my memories with the swing was when my dad and I put it together, and always when I was helping my mum putting up the laundry, and when I was with my aunt, er nieces, when they come, they were they were always on the swing when they come.
Erm my swing was never actually taken down, but it kind of broke and just broke down and we just had to take it, in the end , yeah. But erm, yeah we had to take the swings down because they were like broken. Five years ago I think, or six.
Erm the swings, there’s still some parts in my yard afterwards, and erm I don’t really know, my dad just take it away and put it somewhere, I never know exactly.’
Signy’s father:
(Icelandic)
