Wobbling Opulence
Wobbling Opulence was a project I completed with a group for the CMU course "Possibilistic Design." In response to the project prompt, "rethink the dining experience," we created a speculative experience and film that revolved around jello. Inspired by the jello craze of the '50s, and upon learning that jello was a signifier of wealth due to the price of refrigerators at the time, we began to speculate on what a jello focused dinner party might look like when taken to the extreme.
Through a series of photographs, film, posters, and drawings focused on a colorful, campy subversion of the traditional Norman-Rockwell-esque Thanksgiving dinner, we pose a variety of questions regarding food, dining, and the fractured racial/class lines they embody. We imagine a world in which jello is the ultimate signifier of wealth, where no good hostess would be caught out without a five-course gelatinous meal. In our speculative America, nothing is considered clean unless it is encased in jello.
Wobbling Opulence project video
Wobbling Opulence was made in 3 weeks by myself, Yasemin Rees, Grace Kolosek, Chloe Sun, and Shenai Chan. The video was filmed and edited by Chloe. The jello, costumes, and creative direction were a collaborative effort; we each brought creations and ideas we were interested in.