It's interesting to think about the Ballard Farmer's Market in terms of media. After all, it is in many ways on the low tech end of production of space. As we saw in my previous post though, we use cameras to capture it often times and thus reproduce the space both in a virtual way and in our own memory. Therefore, like Stuart Hall says in his article "Encoding/Decoding", the people who are involved with the market are constantly in the process of producing the space as both sender and receiver. It is not as clear cut as say, someone watching television but there is active participation and message sending just the same. In Benedict Anderson's "Imagined Communities", I was struck by a word I didn't recognize: Sodality. When I looked it up, it turned out to have quite a bit of synchronicity with my conceptualization of the market. It means a non-kin group organized for a specific purpose. Perfect description. I also felt the idea of imagining ties in well with the joint concepts of memory and media. In a way, anything past the exact moment we see it and receive the signals of information is being "imagined" through our memory and with media we fill in the blanks. Like McLuhan's description of hot versus cold media depending on how active our participation.
The market is a unique case because, as you will see from my interview, it can be as active or as passive as you want. It is what you make of it. I also want to broach the subject of the media website dedicated to the town that disappeared, Pinepoint. I was blown away by this particular project. I didn't expect to be as I simply clicked on the link after arriving home on a Friday night. At first it seemed like a combination between Napoleon Dynamite and that website "Awkward Family Photos", but then I found it to be incredibly poignant and beautiful. The idea of a place being "fixed in amber" of the memory forever, which may actually make it something all together different from what it really was; a perfect place you can go back to anytime but only in your mind. Nostalgia is a gift for the ever growing temporal awareness of humanity. Also, the concept that someone, i.e. Richard, can be a keeper of that place and time through his media efforts ties right in to our theme. As we saw with my post last week, many people are the keepers of memory for the market. I wonder how the market of their memory compares to the reality? How does this compare to the concept put forth by the media? For this, I have used my own media investigation of the promotional website the market uses and an interview with my good friend and neighbor Wendy (she is a self-employed caterer who visits the market at least twice a month).
First, how the market hopes to be seen by potential participants:
Next, how Wendy sees the market:
OBSERVATIONS and MY THOUGHTS...It's like Spring, sprinkling rain, 50 degree temps and a strong wind that sets the tent canopies in perpetual motion. Soundtrack of the day: An old song that keeps playing in my head mixes with the subdued mood of the market, a building peak of ambient noise: Shouted directions, laughter, engines starting, clanging of supplies, birdsong and an airplane overhead. There are no musicians there yet. In this early time just before the market begins it is the perfect semi-blank canvas to mix media and memory. I notice that the tents must have assigned spots because I've begun to notice where some of the same vendors are located week after week. There is the lady with the beautiful, small golden candles with spring green or vibrant purple tops. I remember a day several years ago when my husband Fred and I impulsively purchased several after we had cleaned up our apartment and headed to the market. Perhaps my eye seeks her out because of this memory. If you look at the website above as a media tool in how the market portrays itself, it presents a glowing vision of bright, happy days filled with color. Despite Seattle's weather patterns, most of the past media samples I have encountered are from perfect days and when the market is in full bloom. It's interesting that the behind the scenes aspect, that I have had the chance to view isn't usually shown. Especially because my neighbor Wendy particularly enjoyed the implications of hard work and the familial aspect of certain vendors; something you don't always visually see during the market. Being a caterer, her position would allow her a more intimate and understanding connection of the work they do though.
As I'm struck by the composure and order of the structures, the vans, the variety of goods -- everything seems to be in its right place or getting there -- I'm struck once again by memory. Memory has both plagued and enchanted me this weekend. Most likely because we have an out of town guest my husband has known for twenty years and I have known for ten. It's almost as if this has kick started a waterfall of memories, most are specific to the place we all previously lived in, LA. Farmer's markets are huge down there (the weather helps) and I can think of one in the heart of Hollywood that we went to sometimes (when we got up in time). The main thing that stands out to me are the tamales. I wonder how I will remember the Ballard market? Will it be in flashes of memory, color, sense of smell (the most active sense memory)? As I'm leaving I run into Loretta, directing vendors and solving problems, I smile and say "Hi" -- I guess I'm becoming a part of the memory of the market (and the media) too.
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