"Collection of Memories" is an interactive multimedia website that explores family relationship and communication in the age of digitalization.

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Project Statement:

"Chatrooms" is a website that includes interactive multimedia elements. Using real screenshots of chats between Chen and her family members, this website offers an intrusive view into private conversations, taking advantage of others’ curiosity to know more about people’s lives. Aiming to explore the influence of digitalization on communication in her immigrant family, she used various types of communication tools to talk to different family members. For example, she used text messages with her brother who is fluent in English, and WeChat with her mother, who mainly talks through voice messages. The different forms of language used impacted the emotions sensed by the recipients. This project also investigates the idea of a digital footprint, for which every conversation is recorded and able to be brought up regardless of age. Although there is an end to human life, technologies and the digital footprint people left on the Internet will always exist. This offers a way for people to remember those who are no longer with us.

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Artist Statement:

Living in two worlds, Yanrou Chen comes from a Chinese immigrant family living in the United States. As a first-generation college student, she is able to fully immerse herself in the cultures of America outside and the cultures of China at home. This has a huge impact on her works, which often included themes exploring the meaning of family and home. Her artist zine titled “What if we go on a trip?” expresses the yearning of her hometown Doushan in two languages. She is passionate about creating works that dissect the relationships of family in the age of digitalization and the implementation of three languages, languages of technology, Chinese, and English.