Emily Cooper: Second Prize

Deutschland: So fern so nah!

Motivated from the theme ãDeutschland: So fern&emdash;so nah" this piece explores the relationship between communication and cultural influence. I wanted to express the perspectives from which people express themselves, their dreams, their relationships and their perceptions of one another.

The two figures are composites of wax and text, one in German and one in English. Text is but one medium which shapes our lives; we are also influenced by our experiences with many other media and face-to face conversation. From this abundance of information and experience, we filter and assemble our own opinions, our personalities. The English language figure expresses not only an American experience, but also and MIT specific experience. The text was taken from recycled problem sets as a personal example of how MIT continues to shape my life.

The figures communicate with each other from their own Standpunkt, culturally distanced from a very simplistic common ground people share. Often, there is a tendency to homogenize experiences by making claims such as "People are really all alike underneath it all." I wanted show very clearly that our inherent similarities are limited to a bit of biology, while most of our personality comes from our cultural identity. This is not to say that people cannot work towards common goals or understanding in a multicultural environment we can. These ends, however, require cultural understanding based on awareness and acknowledgment, rather than ignorance and homogenization.

The elevated bases on which the figures stand imply two meanings. First, they express each figure's relationship to the material world. Economic decisions, opportunities and habits reveal much about a person's social experience. The German figure stands on piece of the body of a Trabi (Trabant, an East German auto). The American figure stands on part of a cornflake box. A second interpretation of the bases is perceptions about other people's perspectives. On the mental shelf of stereotypes, people keep notions of what other people buy and pursue in their leisure time. The first time I had ever eaten cornflakes was when I was and exchange student in Germany. My host mother brought out a box of cornflakes for breakfast one day saying ãAlle Amerikaner essen Cornflakes, oder?"

Finally, there is a lot of Spannung between the figures. Their dreams flirt with each other. The think about very similar things in different ways, sculpted by their cultural, economic, and social perspectives. Are they running or falling towards each other? What is their relationship? How will they negotiate their differences?

I invite viewers to think about these questions and the ideas I had in mind while creating this piece, while exploring personal perceptions and interpretations. I invite viewers to think about how their experiences have shaped their lives and how they interact with others. I invite viewers to explore the symbols and stereotypes they hold, the ones that I used and other ones that come into discussion of multiculturalism. I invite viewers to think deeply about Germany, about similarities and differences among Americans and Germans, about reactions, and about communication.