Christi Ernest

Coherence in Consequence examines instances of urban decay and how Black Americans fit within it. These instances of decay are a tangible, symbolic, and visual representation of the decay and demolition within the black community. Using objects and materials from decaying areas, I designed street furniture as objects that capture the changing dynamic of being a Black person in an urban environment. The arrangement of the stools dictates how people sit and interact with one another and the environment. A proposed series of workshops and organizations would allow the community to engage not only in collecting materials, but also in the ideation, design, and construction of the stools, allowing people often portrayed as victims to be their own agents, leaders, and creators. The project is not about improving conditions that are already present; it is about designing things that respond to those conditions and offer ways to address them, creating something emblematic of the permanence of the Black community even with the impermanence of decay. Allowing people to rethink the way we see and perceive value in a disadvantaged area shows that there is beauty, legitimacy, and validity in its suffering and history. In order to bring awareness of the socioeconomic deprivation of the community, we elevate materials and in turn elevate the representation of a community. See more on issuu .