Qwerty Installation
Karen Thompson
Scarborough, England
Qwerty installation - exhibition image, Karen ThompsonThis image was taken from the Qwerty installation which was exhibited at the Holburne Museum of Art in Bath, June 2008. The cabinet display features Qwerty Morse Code, A selection of Cuneiform Tablets, plus Tactile Keyboard and Retro Keyboard.
Cuneiform Tablet, ca. 2007, Language Qwerty, Karen ThompsonCuneiform tablets helped form our first libraries and are an ancient method of documenting information. The tablets were created by pushing a reed into pieces of clay, today we push computer keys to document information. For this piece I have crossed the simple acts and pushed the computer keys into the clay, the underside of the computer keys creating a strange hieroglyphic like effect reminiscent of the ancient tablets. I have sawdust fired the work to add to the effect.
Retro Keyboard, Karen ThompsonRetro keyboard is a ceramic and plastic exploration of the use of materials in communications, historically clay has played an important part in documenting information.
Clicking With You, Bath Spa UniversityInspired by online dating and internet relationships, Clicking with You plays with the notion that at times the only physical tactile interaction in an intense exchange is with the computer keyboard.
Meltdown, Karen ThompsonHigh fired porcelain computer keys are melted onto a plastic computer keyboard, a merging of ancient and modern methods of communications.... also the way that one feels after many hour of working on the internet!