All This Fuss Over a Jar of Pickles?

A video compilation of thoughts about the meaning of life and the absurdity of existence, is screened next to a jar of pickles. As feelings of meaninglessness and absurdity often rise from contradictions between elements, the contrast between the insignificance of the pickle’s existence, compared to our own, evokes the absurdity of being. If even a pickle jar can act as a metaphor for existence, does this mean that every object can become meaningful if we trigger it’s meaning—whether it’s human life, the universe or a jar of pickles? This design research project is a reflection on the nature of language, design, and the world that the language we use allows us to design.