The passenger view

In my novel-in-progress I am investigating the legacy of the automobile – the twentieth century’s chief commodity – as we zoom into a new era characterised by the transition from fossil fuels to hybrid and electric alternatives, as well as growing technological complexity around data and surveillance. In this creative work, I present a series of digital images produced as part of my research for this novel, alongside a creative–critical reflection about the creative process. Taken while on a research trip in Paris and Shanghai last year, the images ask us to consider the intimate roles we assume within the vehicle – the driver versus the passenger – and the ways in which the automobile is mediated by the technologies of the day, such as the smart phone. The animating concept for my novel figures the car as an animal that is going extinct, and this line of inquiry raises additional questions explored in my reflection: as we move away from the animal as a formative referent, what real and imagined losses might we be incurring?