Home In A Capsule was my submission for the Enfield Community Art Exhibition 2025, created in response to the prompt "Home." This illustrated piece is an homage to the people, memories, and objects that shape my sense of home. Encased in a whimsical gum-ball machine, each capsule holds a miniature piece of my life—symbols of comfort, love, and belonging.
My father’s love for canoeing, the doors from my childhood home in Pakistan, and my bedroom sofa where I often sat gazing out of the window all find a place here. A paper crane on hydrangeas represents my best friend, while jasmine flowers honour my brother. A capsule with water, a floating playing card, and a fish recalls playing Go Fish with my cousins. My grandparents are represented through knitting needles and a newspaper featuring a fighter jet—marking my grandfather’s daily routine and Air Force service. There is a capsule with a rubber chicken wearing a striped T-shirt, representing my friend who is silly and has an obsession with striped T-shirts. And even my dog, Luna, has her own capsule. Daisies, my birth flower, fill the remaining capsules.
Surrounding the machine are everyday comforts—books, headphones, a scrunchie. The little figure standing by the gum-ball machine is me, balancing on my favourite drink, a playful nod to the personal touches woven throughout the piece. The background is my actual living room, anchoring the piece in my present while celebrating the past.
Through Home in a Capsule, I explore how home isn’t just a place, but a collection of cherished moments, people, and objects that bring warmth and meaning to our lives.
Alternate Background Version