un/delivered is an exploration of grief, memory, habit, connection, and modern rituals of loss.
Existing in the tension between delivery and non-delivery, this project asks you to share what you wish you could say to people you have lost.
The ubiquity of mobile media in our everyday lives means that our devices have become integral to our daily rituals; from the mundane (“I saw this flower and thought of you.") to the moments that warrant celebration (“I finally finished my degree.”). Digital tools now shape, mark, and document how we experience the moments before, during, and after significant events, including death. un/delivered taps into this digital fabric, transforming the simple act of texting into a ritual of remembrance, ongoing connection and closure.
Erving Goffman introduced the idea of co-presence in his work on social interactions, particularly in his book "The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life" (1959). He described co-presence as the condition in which individuals are in each other's immediate physical presence, allowing for a wide range of communication cues and interactions. Goffman’s work laid the groundwork for understanding how presence affects social behavior and interactions.
Amidst the advent of digital communication technologies, many scholars have expanded on Goffman's ideas (see the contemporary work of Sherry Turkle and Mizuko Ito) to explore how co-presence can be achieved through digitally mediated interactions, with phones creating a sense of being with someone despite physical absence. Co-presence finds a new dimension in un/delivered as users send messages into the digital ether, maintaining a connection with those who are no longer around. While messages are un/delivered in the traditional sense (unable to be received by the person for who they were intended), they are graciously received and shared with a greater community through this website. Messages gain a new form of permanence in this digital archive of unsent texts found here, carrying the weight of love, regret, hope, and memory.
Continuing Bonds theory, introduced by Klass, Silverman, and Nickman in 1996, posits that maintaining a relationship with a deceased loved one can be a natural and healthy part of the grieving process. Instead of encouraging individuals to "move on" or "let go" of the deceased on an arbitrary timeline, this theory suggests that (to some degree) a continuing a bond can provide comfort and support during bereavement. The concept of continuing bonds challenges the notion that closure is the sole goal of grieving. Instead, it acknowledges that relationships with the deceased can evolve and persist, providing comfort and a sense of ongoing connection. In un/delivered, the act of sending a text becomes a contemporary ritual, a way to articulate and preserve these continuing bonds in a format that feels immediate and personal.
un/delivered is about what is here/ lost, public/private, intimate/distant, sent/received. It allows users to engage in a modern form of ritual, blending the symbolic and the material in a space that honours both the immediacy of technology and the traipsing, lingering, nature of grief. Here, the boundaries of presence and telepresence blur, as users seek to navigate loss in the digital age.
What's in a name?
Un/delivered references messages that cannot be delivered due to a disconnected phone. Metaphorically, it also captures the broader emotional context of messages that go unreceived, reflecting the experience of having thoughts or feelings about a loved one that remain uncommunicated. The name is intended to evoke a sense of absence and unresolved communication and the emotional weight of messages that were intended for someone who is no longer accessible, emphasizing the feeling of incomplete conversations and the gap left by loss.
For those in the thick of grief and loss, the idea of messages being undelivered symbolizes the difficulties of expressing emotions and maintaining connections after a loved one’s passing. The abrupt end to a dialogue. The title captures the essence of longing and the desire to reach out, even when physical communication is no longer possible. In the digital age, Un/delivered reflects the technical aspect of messaging systems, where messages may not be delivered due to disconnected devices or accounts. It acknowledges the role of technology in the grieving process and how digital tools intersect with our emotional experiences.
In many religious and spiritual traditions, death is seen as a form of deliverance from the sufferings and trials of earthly existence. It is viewed as a transition to a better or more peaceful state, such as an afterlife or spiritual realm. Some belief systems consider death as a deliverance of the soul from the confines of the physical body, allowing it to enter a state of enlightenment, heaven, or spiritual liberation.
What's in a number?
The selection of last four numbers of the un/delivered line (2748) is a nod to The Apology Project, created by conceptual artist Allan Bridge in 1980. The project involved a phone line called the "Apology Line" where individuals could call in and leave messages confessing their misdeeds, expressing remorse, and sometimes receiving responses from other callers.
Callers could confess their actions without revealing their identities, providing a safe space for honesty and reflection. The recorded confessions were sometimes shared with a broader audience through exhibitions, publications, and broadcasts, turning private remorse into a public art form.The Apology project delved into themes of guilt, forgiveness, and the human need for redemption, offering a unique perspective on these universal experiences.