Collecting personal histories is not as easy as one might imagine. My initial response to this process is that peoples memories are housed somewhere in their bodies and conjuring specifics can be like getting those old photo albums out of the dusty
attic. It is especially difficult because people are not required to
recall their histories very often. Sure, they help to shape that persons
identity, but how often do we cognitively consider our identities
in the everyday? Many people taking my questionnaire have
commented that they feel like they are writing an exam...which
I guess is a good thing because they're taking it seriously. Also,
I think it has been helpful in getting people to vocalize their feelings and reasonings behind their
body art, which doesn't happen very often, and allows for further
identity negotiaition. The questionnaire was important to me because it demanded immediate response... in the hopes that memories
contributed would be as 'true' as possible. Now that the questions have
been circulated in participants minds they will have time to
construct their own 'truths' and interpretations of what their
art means to them. It will be interesting
to see the difference between these immediate written responses and more constructed interview responses.
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