ei-det-ic adj. Especially vivid but unreal. Said of images experienced especially in childhood. [German eidetisch, from Greek eidetikos, relating to images or knowledge, from eidesis, knowledge, from eidos, form, shape.]

What instills an object with value? How and why do we commemorate events through objects? I believe that objects have the capacity to serve as a unique trace of a genuine lived experience. An object can act as a memory that carries a particular narrative of time and place and can possibly link us to childhood itself. 

I understand collections of personal objects as a means of constructing personal identity. Collections, like human lives, are seldom entirely all they seem and much of their significance or essence is on the inside or in the act of collecting itself. Collected material that comes from one's own past is capable of expressing and embodying profound meaning and deep feelings. Each object acts as a memory that carries a particular narrative of time and place and can serve as a metaphor for the individual life lived.

Photography by Jim Tillman