Reconstructing Autobiographical Memory Through Art Practice Within The Context Of Silent Family Narratives

Official URL: https://risc01.sabanciuniv.edu/record=b3422563

Derived from the author’s personal past, this thesis is an effort to heal unresolved generational traumas by reconstructing alternatives to silenced family narratives through art. Drawing from Sir Frederic Bartlett’s reconstructive approach towards autobiographical memory and the literary concept of the "unreliable narrator," the thesis establishes a framework supported with four examples of artworks: Memoria, Neriman Hanım, Stories We Tell, and Between Delicate and Violent. The thesis complements the project, Mute-, which is centered around a long-lost family member. It is an attempt to creatively investigate the possibilities of the family past from the perspective of the present, utilizing photography, found image, video and sound.