FRIDGES

If you have a house, you may have a fridge. The fridge is one of the most common objects in a home. We all
need to eat to survive and we all have a fridge at home to keep the food fresh. Even if it is a common object,
the fridge is a very intimate part of us.

Food is directly related to culture. There are people who believe that we are what we eat. I believe that food
reveals a lot of information about us. Food is directly related to economy.

If you let me observe your fridge, I will probably guess a lot of details about your life, your habits, your culture
and your economy.

How to knock on a door (when you are a stranger)

If you want to knock on someone else’s door and they don’t know you, there are some details that you
should be aware of. If someone comes to the door and maybe opens it, be sure that you take a step back
after ringing so they can see you through the peephole. You will have more possibilities to get in if you
respect the private space, so try to stand a bit away from the door or the person inside will feel invaded.

Look directly to the peephole, people find this as a sign of honesty. It is very important to show your
hands from the very beginning, if you hide them behind your back or you have them in your pockets, the
person at the other side of the door probably won´t open it or if they do, they may be very sceptical.
However, if they open the door, you should be at a safe distance from them to make them feel secure and
show your hands all the time.

You know a lot of things from a person just by the way he or she opens the door for you. From 600
hundred doors I knocked in a month just the half of them opened the door. The ones who did, some
made it slowly and showed a part of their head from behind the door. The normal reaction is to open it a
little bit and ask why are you there. I normally introduce myself and explain my project respecting the
distance, trying to make them feel comfortable with my presence. Suddenly, when they understand that
I’m not a Jehova Witness or a weird character they start feeling more confident and they proceed to open
the door a bit more and more, until they show themselves entirely. If you can get to see a person from
the head to toe, that will probably mean that they will let you in.

continues in next slide...

There are also people who won’t open the door. Some of them shout from the inside, “Who are you?!” or
“What do you want?!”; in this case, you know from the beginning that you don’t have many possibilities…
There are also people who open the door and eventually say no, in those cases you always have to thank
the person for opening the door and apologize for bothering them.

You should try to be kind, look directly into the eyes and be clear with what you want and why. Let the
people speak and express their opinion. Maybe they don’t want to be part of the project and it is
important to respect others opinions.

The way you dress is also important. Maybe it doesn’t make sense, but more people opened the door
when I was wearing a dress or some colourful clothes. You have more chances if you go on the weekends
than during the week as well. Also, try not to bother the residents at lunchtime or dinnertime, that’s a
sacred moment for everyone (or at least, it should be).

But the best advice I can give you is to try to put yourself in someone else’s shoes. Then you will
understand how you should behave when you knock on a door and you are a stranger. Imagine that you
are the person inside, living in the Elephant and Castle, in London, in 2009, and someone knocks on your
door when you are not expecting anyone to come.

Would you open?