Team: Binru Liu/ Catherine Achieng/ Qendresa Selimi/ Zhaolu Song
Brief: Re-design the acoustic properties of a physical space.
Time: 22.04.2021-29.04.2021
This week is the first week of Micro UX unit and we are so excited to start a blend study mode this term.
Brief
This term, we will work with Bittersuite, a design lab that aims to re-imagine music performances. Stephanie Singer, Creative Director of Bittersuite, showed us their previous music performances and experience box which evoke people’s feelings through multi-sensory experience physically and imaginatively. Our brief is to redesign the acoustic properties of a physical space, which requires us to define space at the micro-level and explore different technologies.
Steph introducing brief.
I was inspired by what she said that it is an intimate creation and reaction between us, the creators and the participants. It reminds me of the prehension between the ongoing interactions of all entities. Participants’ emotions can be evoked by the scenarios created by creators, at the same time the participation of participants can also affect creators. So, I started thinking about how the connection between participants and creators evolves over time through sound.
Sound and emotion
Thinking about the connection of people, emotion, as a connection between writers and readers, came to our mind. We found that there is a connection between sounds and emotions, some are good some are bad. For example, those that have mysophobia are mostly affected by common trigger sounds while others are not affected much. Though people have different emotions of the same sound, there are still some sounds that arose common emotions generally.
The relationship between sound and emotion. Diagram by Qendresa.
Sound and space
I also did some research about the relationship between sound and space. The interesting part I found is that sound itself can create a 3D space without the aid of vision. By using the different arrival times and the different intensities of sound, people can imagine a 3D space.
The relationship between sound and space. Diagram by me.
Catherine and Binru also did AEIOU research about public space and they found the most common sound in parks.
AEIOU research. Diagram by Catherine.
Micro-level spaces
We started brainstorming about the specific micro-level spaces which are related to people’s emotion. I’m interested in the personal space where can connect people with their memories, such as a bedroom or a private movie theater. Qendresa mentioned space can be zoomed in and it could be a bed or a desk in people’s bedrooms.
Micro-level spaces. Diagram by team.
This week outcome
We came up with three aspects that we want to explore further: Mapping sound, Embodied experience, and Inaudible sound. For the next step, we envisioned creating a storytelling sound journey affecting people emotionally.
Three directions. Diagram by team.
Emotional journey. Diagram by me.
Our classmates thought we did very comprehensive research and want to know how it can lead to our next step. John suggested we be more specific and begin to explore tools, objects, and materials of the direction we want to design. Besides, he advised us to explain ideas by creating experiences not just describe which I very agreed with.
Presentation. Photo by Ines.
Next week, we will define the micro lever space and start trying various tools and brainstorm ideas.
References
Cartreine, J. (2017), Misophonia: When sounds really do make you “crazy”. Available at: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/misophonia-sounds-really-make-crazy-2017042111534 (Accessed: 26th Apr. 2021).
Davis, C. and Nussbaum, G.F. (2008) 'Ambient Nature Sounds in Health Care', Perioperative Nursing Clinics, 3(1), pp. 91-94. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpen.2007.11.007.
Huron, D. (2015). ‘Affect induction through musical sounds: an ethological perspective.’, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 370(1664), pp.20140098–20140098.
Wang, Keda (2005). The aesthetic principles of soundscape in architectural design and built environment. Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Texas A&M University. Available at: https://hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /570.
Warner, J. (2012), The 10 Most Annoying Sounds and Why They Bother Us. [online] WebMD. Available at: https://www.webmd.com/brain/news/20121012/10-most-annoying-sounds (Accessed 28 April 2021).
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