While I’m not sure I’ve reached the status of hoarder just yet, I do nonetheless have a lot of junk that I can never seem to get rid of. I have boxes and boxes filled with photos and objects that that I keep because they remind me of someone or something; things that aren’t really worth anything, but mean a lot to me. Concepts such as worth or value are subjective by nature, and are often times determined by the stories behind them. Part of our role as communicators includes placing meaning within context, and representing the subjective objectively. So take something as mundane as the “red circle” emoji — it’s seldom used and meaningless for most, but for me it serves a very specific purpose: it's a reminder to behave like an adult.

A few years ago, as a precautionary measure, I decided it would be a good idea for me to add a red emoji to the contact name of anybody in my phone I did not want to accidentally or haphazardly contact, like parents, teachers, clients, or ex-girlfriends. I think I picked the red dot because the color stood out the most inside the messages app, and thus I’d be less likely to embarrass myself by mistakingly sending something silly, profane, or childish to anyone other than my close friends.

During the period of transition from teenager to adult, it functioned like a personality switch between laid back and goofy, to well-spoken and professional. When choosing how to create an experience that retold this story as objectively as possible, I drew inspiration from the first thing that ever made me think “jeez, I’m getting old,” which was watching the news. The red dot became a red button, a switch between childhood tv and adult tv.

The final outcome of this project is geared towards recreating the experience of tension during the period of transition between Young and adult life in an objective fashion.