The Formamat is an interactive installation, art piece and scientific-philosophical inquiry. It questions how much value we attach to digital data that we have stored on our cameras, phones, usb-sticks and mp3-players. With the Formamat — a vending machine that returns candies in exchange for the deletion of digital data from the user’s mobile storage device — we invite people to experience the joy of deletion and encourage them to think about the value and (in-)dispensability of their files. At the same time, we analyzing their deletion-behavior and thereby investigate the subject in a broader sense.
The Formamat was realized in the course of the Media Technology MSc programme at Leiden University. The student team consisted of Zane Kripe, Hanna Schraffenberger and Arnout Terpstra. The project has resulted in a poster presentation and a video publication:
Formamat from Hanna Schraffenberger on Vimeo.
