Julia Higginbottom — Artist, Activist, Crofter and Producer.
BOM Fellow 2018–2019
Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts (FRSA)
I’m a technologist artist and filmmaker. Disruption through technology for societal change has been at the heart of my professional practice for the last 15 years. Whether through examining changes in storytelling through early 360 degree filming in 2007, developing theatre with livestreaming to generating a film script through social media storytelling, I have enjoyed creating and developing projects using new tools, data and ideas in order to enable us to better connect as humans.
During my BOM fellowship in 2018–2019, I started ‘Comutiny’, a project vehicle that allowed time to research, reflect and respond to how communities are formed, nurtured and grown, how aging affects us and how technology will increasingly play its part. I am developing my practice whilst exploring the stories through lo-fi, open source AR/VR and other methodologies.
I have recently moved from Birmingham to the Isle of Lewis to further my artistic development and grow my practice. I am also a crofter and am looking forward to becoming a legendary shepherd.
Subsequent to this research whilst a BOM Fellow, I am currently developing 3 new works related to Memory and aging, with groups of elders in Birmingham and on the Isle of Lewis.
Aide mémoire — Aide-mémoire is a French loanword meaning “a memory-aid; a reminder or memorandum, especially a book or document serving this purpose”. Sparked by the idea of this, I have begun working with a group of early stage dementia elders to produce their own zines. I am enjoying how this anarchic form of self publishing can aid their self expression and memory development. Many are exploring how their dementia makes them feel, whilst others are designing for deliberate aide-memoires. We plan to tour the zine/s at Zine festivals in the UK and Europe.
Memento Mori — A memento mori is an artistic or symbolic reminder of the inevitability of death. Working with these elders has caused me to examine my own attitudes to death, aging and memory. I am creating a series of small wearables which combine jewellery making, tech and the visual arts, and serve to give glimpses of my journey struggling with the spiritual and physical changes I have gone through as I age, the realisation that my own memory management is flawed and holds only challenges as I age.
Memory Fail — An installation which seems at face value to reflect the fluffy, sentimental and saccharine media portrayal of particularly, aging old ladies. A homely scenario recreated with china and chintz. The participant is invited to step in and experience this sweet view and soon discover small up close reminders of the reality of the confusion, gaps and physical challenges of dementia start to become obvious. It aims to challenge the idea that dementia care is just about photo albums and memory boxes.
Films:
Hacktivism:
Other: