In this conjecture I bring my focus to the lack of digestible financial knowledge available to the general public. In Huntington Escape the users are prompted to test their financial knowledge in a gamified, yet stress inducing setting. By collaborating with the group they came with, they will work through real-life financial struggles and learn to combat them with real-world solutions.
I drew much inspiration from Bourgeois’s spider sculptures and how they were so two-sided in their meanings. From Burgeois’s point-of-view these spiders represent her mother, and thus a caring and nurturing figure, yet from the exterior these figures are uncanny and uncomfortable to look at and encounter (Selvin, 2020). In many ways Escape is a way to confront those uncomfortable and uncanny emotions and hopefully realize the true caring and nurturing nature that finances can hold if they are dealt with in a proper manner.
In Tree Chuangs collaboration is the main topic of focus and that is the second large inspiration I drew from in this conjecture. Leaning on the playful human nature that we all possess. In Ran’s project you were able to see how unlocking the childlike nature of people can in turn unlock a sense of trust and understanding of other people and other experiences (Where We Belong art project brings community together, 2024). Only in these uncomfortable situations are we able to truly see the truth. I believe that the collaborative nature of Escape allows for that childlike nature to be released, and in turn, allows for real conversations about finances and financial well-being.
Sources
Selvin, C. (2020a, May 20). Louise Bourgeois’s iconic spider sculptures have a surprising history. ARTnews.com. https://www.artnews.com/art-news/artists/louise-bourgeois-spider-sculptures-history-1202687603/
Where we belong art project brings community together. Harvard Gazette. (2024, June 14). https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/newsplus/where-we-belong-art-project-brings-community-together/
