I began my journey as a photographer in 2009, armed only with a small phone that produced pixelated and low-quality images. At the time, neither I nor my friends had access to professional cameras. Despite the limitations, we understood the importance of capturing moments in memory. A photo of a flying dove, for example, holds greater significance than a meticulously composed shot of an event. As it turns out, this approach proved to be true. To an external viewer, these blurry pictures may not convey much information, but to me, they evoked clear memories. Without placing too much importance on the technical aspects of photography, we were able to recall the sensations, sounds, songs, and smells of that moment.

My plan is to create an interactive exhibition that immerses visitors in the memories captured by these photographs. Visitors will be able to stop by each photo, smell specially prepared objects that evoke the scents of the environment, put on headphones and listen to the sounds of the surroundings, or the music that I was listening to at the time. By doing this, I aim to give visitors an opportunity to experience the memories and feelings that are associated with the photographs.

To depict the places from my past that no longer existed in reality, I turned to other people's photographs. Sifting through hundreds of images, I pieced together details and connections that helped me remember and recreate these lost places. The result was a collage of memories, each one representing a different aspect of a place that can no longer be visited in its original form. As someone who has moved 15 times in their life, I understand the importance of preserving memories of the places we've lived in. That is why I chose to draw from old photographs rather than from nature. Using paint on paper, I created detailed illustrations that I then printed on photo paper, giving the impression that they were actual photographs of the place.

To showcase these illustrations, I plan to add them to the exhibition as part of a photo exhibit. I plan to experiment with different sizes and formats to find the best way to present them, whether it be as a photo exhibition or as photographs lying on a table.

As an artist, I have honed my ability to draw from imagination, without relying on photographs as references. This has given me the freedom to explore stories that exist solely in my memories. These stories are accompanied by text that help to convey the essence of the memory. The accuracy of these memories may be questionable, but the importance lies in the emotional truth of the memory and the way it is portrayed through illustration.

Through my illustrations, I aim to convey the feelings, emotions and the atmosphere of the memory, rather than the factual accuracy. The process of creating these illustrations was therapeutic and allowed me to reconnect with my past experiences and memories.

The use of visual novels and illustrations as a medium allows me to add a new dimension to the memories, a dimension that can't be captured by photographs or written words alone. The illustrations in combination with text stories will create a unique and personal narrative that will transport the audience into my memories, allowing them to experience them in a new and different way.

To showcase these stories and illustrations, I plan to create a book that combines text and imagery to bring these memories to life. This book will serve as an intimate and personal exploration of the theme of memory, and the ways in which it can be portrayed through illustration. I am also considering creating an interactive exhibition where visitors can read and explore the stories and illustrations in a more immersive way.

I recently discovered the potential of neural networks for working with text and photographs, specifically in the form of stable diffusion, midjourney, and DALLE-2. The process of creating images using neural networks reminded me of the effort required to remember and recover lost memories. To achieve this, I start with a story from my diary in words or a photograph (txt to img or img to img) as a starting point. My brain then creates something new based on what it has seen before, but not directly related to the current memory, and it all revolves around the original question - that part of reality that I remember and use as a starting surface.

DALLE-2, in particular, works in an interesting way with outpaint, allowing me to add a photo of a moment and complete it by describing what was outside of the frame. It then creates a new, imaginary photo of an event that never existed, but feels real. This process is similar to how my own memory works, where faces, things, and backgrounds are distorted and do not match reality.

Midjourney is also a valuable tool in this project, as it works with text description generations. I plan to use it by providing prompts that describe events, allowing it to create drawings of non-existent realities for existing memories.

Finally, stable diffusion is great for uploading photos and/or generations from Midjourney and working with img to img, translating, for example, photos from the first part of the project into something else related to the same memory.

Now I am at the stage of experiments and studying neural networks and I hope to soon make this part of the project, which will combine the above.