Conceptual Framework
Thermal paper is a paradox—designed to be instant, cheap, and disposable, yet it holds the traces of our most habitual activities: purchases, travel, appointments. This experiment turns thermal paper into a reflective surface for memory, authorship, and decay—writing with heat, not ink.
By scaling up receipts and inviting physical interaction (via heat), this work makes the invisible visible, and explores themes of data, consumption, and agency.
Thermal paper can mainly be found in receipts in our every day life.
Moodboard:
As I collected a pile of receipts I wanted to make them a larger format which is why i sewed them together to a >A2 poster. This “fabric of consumption” became my base canvas with the intent to turn throwaway records into an artifact worthy of scale and attention.
To make the experience interactive I brought my hair straightener to the FH and let our classmates interact and mess with my poster and this is how it turned out:
Documentation / Final Format
- I should photograph or scan the heat-marked surfaces before and after interaction.
- Mount the receipt poster behind a glass or frame
- Alternatively, film a time-lapse of the interaction: viewers burning, revealing, erasing.
For further research with this material I wanna loo into thermal labels next. I have lots of paper for my label printer which I would like to inlcude in one of my experiments.
