[Last modified: December, 6 2024 08:02 PM]
For this practical, I chose to sit on a bench in front of the KOKO Theatre one sunny afternoon for 15 minutes. The bench is part of a small square at the junction of three roads in Camden, accompanied by another bench and a statue. This little square seems to have its own personality, with dozens of pigeons resting peacefully and happily on the ground, blocking the path of the hurried-looking pedestrians.
The first thing I noticed after sitting down was the glaring sunlight that hurt my eyes. It took my eyes several minutes to adapt to the light and start observing my surroundings. Then my eyes naturally rested on the KOKO theater just 10 meters ahead. It’s a building I pass by daily, but I have never stopped to appreciate it. Its classical design, with a facade that appears marble-like, and its impressive size make it stand out. Together with the pigeons and the statue, it creates a sense of stillness and beauty, distinctive to the fast pace of the traffic around it.
The square was far from silent. The soundscape was dominated by the roar of traffic, cars, and motorcycles accelerating as the traffic lights changed. At one point, an ambulance passed by, its siren piercing, hurting my ear drum. The traffic lights emitted regular, high-pitch beeps, notifying pedestrians when to cross. Weaved among them were the softer sounds of pigeons flapping their wings as they landed. The combination of high and low-pitch sounds painted a vivid auditory portrait of life in the city.
Reflecting on this brief but rich encounter, I was reminded of the value of slowing down and engaging with the everyday through a multimodal anthropological lens. Often, what seems mundane can showcase surprising complexity of human and non-human life.