transcript of one of the conversations

After i recorded the conversation i then sat down, listen through the various audio clips and picked out an interesting topic i thought i could use. It turned out to be the conversation my mum & dad had about the essence of nostalgia and what the word means to them. I really like the banter between them. I wrote down what they aid so i could use then progress further with it.

More Research - Asking different generations

To try and understand the concept of nostalgia I decided to record conversations with people from different generations to see what they considered as nostalgic and provide their personal understanding of it.

Thoughts

Although it was interesting to see people’s life summed up in simple drawings, in the end I found it was more general memories that were being told rather nostalgic moments, it was more a life story. 

Interesting Outcomes

Although I suggested to think of happy memories, two people drew scenes involving death of some sort. Just thought was quite interesting. Its something they vividly remember but as one of them said,’ someone may die but they live on in your memory and history, you never really stop thinking about them’ 

Others take on Nostalgia

Although I had in mind people describing their own personal memories for nostalgia, for one person, nostalgia to them was key events from the past, just thought it was quite interesting to see others people's point of view.

Another whiteboard memory

More whiteboard stories with audio

I asked people from an older generation to draw their memories, also i asked them to record a voiceover to narrate what each of the scenes means to them.

More Stories

I asked more people to do it, to get a variety of stories, after this i think i should ask people of a different age, from a older generation perhaps

creating a genuine VHS look

Manage to use this video as a kind of guide to help transfer a VHS tape to a digital format

This is the technique I have used to create a genuine VHS look. The process involves creating a digital video piece, then recording it to VHS and then finally transferring it back to digital again.

Nostalgia in recent advertising

Beyonce has recently done a advert for Pepsi. It shows mirror version of her from past music videos, the line at the end 'embrace the past, live for now' is a great summary of a positive take on Nostalgia.

Whiteboard Idea

I wanted to look further into the idea of someones childhood. i had this idea of asking people tho think about key memories in their lifetime that they remember. They were first asked to roughly sketch out their ideas, then using a whiteboard to draw these scenes in simple stickmen form. This is so they didn't have to spend so much time drawing each scene and not have to worry about the fine detail, but just to put across the key points of the scene.

Nostalgia in programmes

Earlier this year, itv celebrated its thirty years of broadcasting by showing all of the old shows it used to run, just watching some of the programmes can invoke nostalgia as it transports you back to you childhood, when you use to watch all the kid T.V. programmes.

Nostalgia Photographs

Here's a couple i tried out. I definitely had some nostalgic moments when doing this, recalling when the photo was taking, what i was doing, what the photograph represented i.e first day of school.

I really interested now into looking into other ways of recalling past memories from people's lives.

More Cinemagraphs

These were more attempts at cinema graphs. I've become really fascinated with them and how effective they could be. I had an idea where by you create one from a video shot with a moment you want to capture you could then have it in a digital frame for your house.

However i felt these would be too superficial, like creating a form of instant nostalgia. So I decided that I needed to look back at past memories

Dear Photograph

http://dearphotograph.com

 The idea is taking a snapshot — usually one featuring one or more people and dating from the film-photography era — and holding it up against the original setting so that past and present blend into a new work of art. The images contributed by the site's readers are wonderfully evocative. Looking at the family photos of strangers was never so transfixing.

I really want to try this, digging around to try and find old photos and then taking a picture of them in the same place but in the present.

Cimeagraphs

Here are a selection of cinemagraphs. I really like how the movement is limited to only part of the video, it add more emphasis to particular areas. It can really bring out a moment you otherwise might have missed if everything in the video was moving.

Quick Little Project

The Idea is to have a Cinemagraph in picture frames instead of just photos. That way you can film any scene and have play on repeat, like a waterfall, for example. The concept is to have a stronger connection to the picture, adding movements could add more meaning and enhance it

The cinemagraph can be easily made on a smartphone app and then wirelessly uploaded to the frame, so it can always change, to suit your mood or occasion like christmas

Adding a festive scene like for christmas one year could mean you use it for future years. This is the main idea behind this project to mix nostalgia with new technology so it can progress forward whilst still looking back

Things I could do

Take a picture of a childhood toy, a classic video game or anything that strikes a nostalgic chord with you. See the variation from the different generations.

Carrying on the idea of asking other people what nostalgia means to them, do they carry anything on them that they feel is nostalgic?

What I Have Learnt

Be careful about nostalgia. Nostalgia, in some lights, is nothing more than a big fat lie. You can go ahead and lie to yourself and talk about the Golden Age ‘back then’ – but you’re leaving out enormous swaths of experience and life in order to see that time ‘back then’ as simple. Nostalgia can be a force for good, it can help us maintain our collective cultural memory, it can help us remember that things are not always complex and dreary – like it seems to be now.

An unhealthy nostalgia thinks everything was better in the past, and impedes cultural progress with constant hand wringing about the modern age. Healthy nostalgia is grateful for the modern advances that have made life better, but misses some things from the past and works to bring them back.

For the last few decades, every generation has wanted to reinvent the wheel, wiping the slate clean to make society new from scratch. But just as dangerous as hyper-nostalgia is hyper-presentism. This postmodern world sees only the current moment with no sense of history and of what came before. We’ve thrown out all the old rules but failed to make any new ones.

Scrapping the project every decade in favor of building on the latest societal fads and winds of change only results in a ramshackle shell of a culture, one which shivers in the wind until the next generation knocks it down and gets to work on its own shaky edifice.

Ideally, what should happen is that each generation should take what was best from the generation before it and add it as a brick in the foundation of the culture, discarding the dross and ever stacking together the lessons we’ve learned, the things that have really worked best. This way the culture becomes stronger and stronger over time.

 nostalgia can blind us to the truth, the factuality, the actual thingness of a thing in favor of our frail perception of how much fun we used to have with that thing. But it’s only human to look back in longing to a time that seems less complicated (and more fun) than the present. It’s especially understandable now, in this cruel modern era, when our country has had to weather a decade of terrorism, war, psychotically divisive politics, and the slow-but-steady of the global economy. By comparison, the 1990s can’t help but look like a glowing wonderland of peace and prosperity: 

Within the psychiatric framework, nostalgia may be considered a yearning to return home to the past -- more than this, it is a yearning for an idealized past -- a longing for a sanitized impression of the past, what in psychoanalysis is referred to as a screen memory -- not a true recreation of the past, but rather a combination of many different memories, all integrated together, and in the process all negative emotions filtered out. For a personal example of screen memory think of your first ever vivid memory. Although to you it seems a realistic recall of an early childhood event, it in fact is a compilation of memories all integrated into one. This can be demonstrated in psychoanalysis: during the analysis of the transference neurosis, the patient's earliest memory undergoes changes and divides into multiple components that are separate, definable childhood memories.

If one defines nostalgia as a yearning for an idealized past, the bittersweet nature of it becomes clearer. One can never return to this past, it never truly existed. And the present reality, no matter how good, can never be as good as an ideal -- which nostalgia has created. Thus the saying "you can't go home again."

Another important function of nostalgia may be in providing a link between our past and present selves—that is, nostalgia may provide us with a positive view of the past and this could help to give us a greater sense of continuity and meaning to our lives. The researchers surmise that nostalgia may also acquire greater significance in old age—elderly adults are especially vulnerable to social isolation and nostalgia may help them overcome feelings of loneliness.

The authors note that "nostalgia is now emerging as a fundamental human strength". They conclude that "nostalgia is uniquely positioned to offer integrative insights across such areas of psychology as memory, emotion, the self and relationships. Nostalgia has a long past and an exciting future.

Senses

Nostalgic thoughts literally give us a warm glow, a study has found. Not only do heart-warming memories make it easier for us to withstand cold temperatures, they also make us feel physically warmer.

It is thought the phenomenon can be explained by a cross-over in the brain, with a region involved in feelings also being key to how the body feels.

 'Nostalgia is experienced frequently and virtually by everyone and we know that it can maintain psychological comfort. For example, nostalgic reverie can combat loneliness. The study has shown that nostalgia serves a homeostatic function, allowing the mental simulation of previously enjoyed states, including states of bodily comfort; in this case making us feel warmer or increasing our tolerance of cold.

Music is especially evocative of emotion. Nostalgic song lyrics engage the listener in reverie and capture the bittersweet feeling of the past’s irretrievability. Some nostalgic song lyrics describe happy memories. For example, the country song, “Young,” recounts joyful experiences that typify the exuberance of youth. Not all nostalgic songs are happier than other songs; sometimes they remind us of loss. Songs such as “Those Were the Days” and “Yesterday” focus on how the passage of time inevitably brings changes in youthfulness, vigor and the carefree innocence not yet jaded by the mistakes, difficulties and painful aspects of life. But the distinctive bittersweet affect characteristic of nostalgia can transform the sense of loss into a positive appreciation of how much we have enjoyed, how much we have survived and, most importantly, how much we have loved and have been loved.

Whether the emotional tone of a song is happy or sad, nostalgic lyrics can engage the listener in reflection on who they once were and how they have arrived at their present self. Whether secular or religious, by connecting us to a shared tradition, holiday music can renew our sense of belonging to something greater than ourselves. By reminding us of events, customs, beliefs or rituals, holiday music can help us feel connected to others, even during times of stress or loneliness.

The Paper Passion perfume comes packaged in a hollowed-out book for those who love the smell of the printed page. (steidlville)What are the sounds and smells of nostalgia? With the recent rise of super-slim laptop computers and e-book readers, it might be the click-clack of a typewriter, or the musty scent of a printed book. U.K.-based publisher Steidl recently launched Paper Passion, a fragrance formulated to smell like old books. Now you, too, can carry the scent of wood pulp, ink and the gradual acidic breakdown of fibres.Steidl's founder Gerhard Steidl teamed with Wallpaper* magazine and perfumer Geza Schoen to create the scent for Paper Passion. The idea came from a discussion between Steidl and Chanel's creative director Karl Lagerfeld, according to the perfume's product page. "The smell of a freshly printed book is the best smell in the world," said Lagerfeld.

The Noisy Typer app makes your sleek Macbook keyboard sound like an old-fashioned - and very loud - typewriter, complete with the carriage return bell ring. (Theo Watson/Noisy Typer) If a printed book contains the smell of nostalgia, however, the loud click-clack of a typewriter might be its sound. The Noisy Typer app, currently available only for Macs, simulates the sound of a typewriter’s keys whenever you type on a keyboard for your iMac or Macbook.It also includes separate sounds for the backspace and space keys, as well as the recognizable bell ring when pressing the Enter key to start a new line in a word processor to simulate a carriage return.

Examples of Online Nostalgia concepts

Everyone is in someone else's photos without even knowing it, and this is the place to find these unexpected connections

The Nostalgia Project  is in a collaborative work between musicians, artists, computer scientists, and the general public. It draws upon web-based photo sharing, text messaging, and musical performance to explore the notion of nostalgia, merging the visual image withmusic both responding to and affecting the other. 

It was the cult space trading game, invented by a pair of Cambridge students, which hooked a generation of BBC Micro users. Now Elite will embark upon a new mission after its creators persuaded fans to pledge £1.5 million to help create a 21st century sequel.

The Nostalgia Critic is a web television series starring Doug Walker as the eponymous reviewer. The series initially launched on YouTube in 2007 before moving to an independent site, That Guy with the Glasses, run by production company Channel Awesome.

The show involved the Nostalgia Critic, often referred to as simply the Critic or NC, reviewing mostly nostalgic media in a negative (but humorous) manner. This mostly concerns movies and television series from the 1980s and 1990s but he had on occasion made exceptions for movies and television series that were released before 1980 and after 1999.

Behaviour

The nostalgic urge to recreate the past within the present is, in many ways, a driving force for behavior -- how frequently we marry spouses with characteristics reminiscent of those of our parents. As other examples, we may adopt the political affiliations and prejudices of our forebears, become democrats, republicans, or even racists because our parents were.

Similarly, the nostalgic urge to recreate the past explains why so many abused children marry abusive spouses, and children of alcoholics marry alcoholic spouses -- not because their childhood was happy, but rather because they seek to recreate their idealized sanitized memories of their childhood by identifying with symbolic manifestations of the past which they find in their alcoholic or abusive spouses.

Through daily behavior, the nostalgic urges may also be partially gratified -- food choices for example (hence the passing down from generation to generation of family recipes) -- with an actual primitive incorporation into the self of the nostalgic object.

While nostalgia in reasonable doses can provide a sense of comfort for stressed-out adults, too much can have a negative effect. It is very common to believe that an earlier decade was preferable to present day conditions, but that viewpoint can be misleading. People who grew up in the 1950s may remember hula hoops, Elvis Presley and penny candies, but they usually don't indulge memories of McCarthyism, repressive roles for women and a lack of racial equality. Every decade has its positive and negative aspects, so an unrealistic sense of nostalgia may create an unhealthy distortion of reality. Some people can get caught up in feelings about a more ideal past that make their current lives seem mundane or unfulfilling by comparison.

Painful feelings of nostalgia can often be addressed by acquiring a beloved item or planning a visit to a childhood hometown. It may hurt more when combined with feelings of hopelessness or helplessness. The power of knowing you can revisit parts of your past can help to lessen the effects of homesickness or nostalgia. It is important to remember, however, that these feelings are normal and healthy, but making a conscious effort to live in the past may not be. If a healthy sense of nostalgia seems to be turning into an unhealthy depression, you should seek professional counseling to regain a proper balance.

People feel more nostalgic during the holidays because many memories are reawakened and relationships renewed. During the holidays, families and friends get together to celebrate and reconnect; they get caught up on one another’s lives, reminisce and browse through old photographs. Even from afar, friends and relatives get back in touch, with phone calls, letters, greeting cards and posts on social networking sites. Like anniversaries and other temporal landmarks, holidays remind us of special times and help us keep track of what has changed and what has remained the same in our lives — and in ourselves. For many, holidays bring back memories of simpler times along with the sense of the security of childhood or the carefree feelings of being young, with fewer of the worries and stress that accompany responsibilities. Most often, holidays remind us of people who have played important roles in our lives and the activities we shared with them. This is one reason why people who are away from home are especially likely to feel nostalgic during the holidays and why so many people travel to be with family and friends. 

Health

Nostalgia, or the sentimental longing for the past, is a fascinating emotion, often involving, as the psychologists Xinyue Zhou, Constantine Sedikides, Tim Wildschut, and Ding-Guo Gao wrote in a 2008 study, "the simultaneous expression of happiness and sadness." By reminding subjects of nostalgic events in their past, they found, people felt more socially supported. Nostalgia, they wrote, is a "psychological resource that protects and fosters mental health." It counteracts loneliness by making us feel more connected. It's intensely associated with family and friends, special events, and beautiful scenery. Apparently, according to a 2006 study led by Tim Wildschut, we experience feelings of nostalgia roughly three times a week. Nostalgia softens us. It's humbling and healthy. Vast oceans and sunsets remind us of how small we all are in space, it seems, as nostalgia reminds us how small we all are in time.

Recent studies examining nostalgia have shown that it occurs in all cultures and among all age groups. Despite this wide range, there are some features that are common to the majority of nostalgic experiences. For example, nostalgic thoughts will usually feature a person we are close to, a significant event or a place important to us. In addition, we play a starring role in our nostalgic scenes, although we are generally surrounded by family and friends.

Research suggests that nostalgia can promote psychological health. Inducing nostalgia in a group of study volunteers resulted in overall positive feelings in this group, including higher self-esteem and an increase in the feeling of being loved and protected by others. Recent work has also shown that nostalgia counteracts effects of loneliness, by increasing perceptions of social support. In addition, that same study found that loneliness can trigger nostalgia.

Nostalgia Marketing

In Fashion: Vintage consumption is flourishing online and off. Call it the renaissance of retro, from once-passé décor aesthetics, to traditional barbershops for classic haircuts, to old fashioned sweets appealing to our inner child. Even the colors of yesteryear are back. Honeysuckle pink, specifically Pantone 18-2120 TCX, is the new-crowned hue of 2011. It recalls the lipstick our mothers wore, or maybe the tile in our ‘50s bathrooms. The New York Times points out a nostalgic fashion trend: stores such Blue Velvet Vintage and Stop Staring! are booming, selling reproductions of vintage, curvy, feminine shapes from the past. The only difference is that their fashions are made to fit and don’t come some of the shortcomings of original vintage – musty odor, stains, bad fit or fragility.

 In Food: Crops of new restaurants pay homage to American culinary classics. Vintage spirits and forgotten cocktails are quaffed anew. In a nod to tradition and technology, AMC’s Mad Men Cocktail Culture app helps users master the forgotten art of cocktail mixing. And in a campaign throwback, Mr. Peanut, the iconic Planters Peanuts character, has begun to talk (the voice of Robert Downey Jr.) for the first time in the 94 years since he was first introduced with the hope of “charming” consumers.

In Travel: Nostalgic travelers are ringing cash registers where happy memories were once made. Beset with budget cuts, the U.S. National Park Service hopes to inspire nostalgia with historic park brochures on its website, including a vintage 1913 one from Crater Lake National Park. Officials hope to evoke childhood memories of family vacations long past, when mom and dad might “see the USA in a Chevrolet” on a cross-country jaunt when gas was a quarter a gallon.

A variety of marketing research studies do indicate that the use of nostalgia in advertising does arouse attention, is entertaining, is persuasive, and evokes nostalgic reflections in consumers. Besides the positive emotions, they also induce mental images of former situations and experiences that are also positive in nature.

 In comparison studies, nostalgic advertising induces more positive emotions and more intensive mental images than non-nostalgic advertisements. The combination of the positive emotions and images evoked by the ads generate positive resonance toward both the ad and the product advertised.

Nostalgia advertising appeals are especially appropriate for emotional products because the positive response to them can enhance the other positive emotions generated by the product itself. Products that are likely to be subject to mental images are also very appropriate because nostalgic ads evoke a more intensive mental image than do non-nostalgic ads. The result can be a direct and positive effect on consumers’ attitude toward the product advertised.

At this point there is no need for Coca-Cola to keep creating new Christmas adverts - the infamous 'trucks' ad hits on the basis nostalgia and the the fact that it's perfectly crafted. In fact, I know lots of people (myself included) who Christmas doesn't start for until they've seen the Coca-Cola trucks advert.

Architecture

Both recently constructed baseball stadiums in New York City fall victim to this nostalgic fantasy approach, too; the Yankees have brought back the old manually-operated scoreboards in left and right field (a feature last used in the 1960s), while the Mets’ Citi Field has a facade loosely modeled on Ebbets Field, the beloved former home of the greatly missed Brooklyn Dodgers. Even the dark green color of Citi Field’s seats was copied from Manhattan’s extinct Polo Grounds, where the New York Giants and the Mets once played.