#worldofideasandimagination

Learning about phenomenology helped me understand how personal experience shapes the way we see and interpret design. From what I understand, phenomenology focuses on how people experience things through their senses, emotions, and memories rather than only looking at objects objectively. This made me reflect on how design is not just about visual appearance but also about the feelings and meanings it creates for different viewers. I realised that two people can look at the same design but have completely different experiences based on their background and personal memories.

At first, I found phenomenology quite difficult to understand because it felt abstract and philosophical. However, through examples and discussions, I began to connect the concept to my own design practice. I started paying more attention to how textures, colours, and compositions can evoke certain moods or memories. This helped me see design as an experience rather than just a visual outcome.

This artwork explores the theme of time through a phenomenological lens, using an hourglass to symbolize the flow of human experience. The composition is divided into three sections , youth, adulthood, and old age , representing the different ways we perceive and live through time. In phenomenology, time is not just measured objectively but is felt and lived.

At the top of the hourglass, the younger figures symbolize potential and energy, where time seems abundant. Their relaxed expressions and upward positioning reflect how, in youth, time often feels limitless. As we move toward the center, the space narrows, symbolizing the transition into adulthood. This is where responsibilities, especially financial ones, begin to shape our perception of time. The dollar signs flowing downward represent how the pressure of economic survival often dominates this stage.

In the lower half, the older figures carry more serious expressions, reflecting a life shaped by experiences, memories, and the passage of time. Although money appears to be lost along the way, the real value lies in the memories and meaning created through lived experience. Phenomenology emphasizes how we engage with time emotionally, physically, and mentally , not as a clock, but as a flow of being.

The hourglass becomes more than a symbol; it’s a reflection of how time, responsibility, and memory shape identity. Despite the weight of financial struggles, the moments we live through , joyful or difficult , remain central to who we are.

(240 WORDS)

Heidegger Being and Time and the Care for the Self Escudero