Spoon
In this piece, I have some fun playing with a psychological phenomenon known as ‘Semantic Satiation’. This phenomenon refers to how repetition of a word or phrase causes it to temporarily lose meaning for the listener. As the word/label is repeated, the listener perceives the speech as meaningless sounds.
In this piece, I have some fun playing with a psychological phenomenon known as ‘Semantic Satiation’. This phenomenon refers to how repetition of a word or phrase causes it to temporarily lose meaning for the listener. As the word/label is repeated, the listener perceives the speech as meaningless sounds.
Words are symbols of symbols. They are, in truth, twice removed from reality. This piece aims to give a direct experience of the unreality of words.
I invite you to pick up any common, everyday object that happens to be near you. While looking at it, repeat its name again and again for 45 seconds or more. See how your perception of the object may start to shift. Perhaps you will have a more direct experience of the ‘everyday’ object once the meaning of the label falls away.