Anxiety Toilet Conceptualisation

Anxiety Toilet

 

Idea

When seeking peace and quiet during a sudden anxiety attack, one would usually consider a toilet as the first place of refuge. With the given privacy of a toilet, one can stay hidden from the public eyes and avoid breaking down.

However, the Anxiety Toilet is not the toilet for such situations. As a dark object, the Anxiety Toilet will amplify the fear of anxiety in an enclosed space. Our interaction uses sound and light to amplify common symptoms of anxiety such as hyperventilation, panic, worry, stress, sweating, trembling, fatigue and increased heart rates.

Calming jazz music plays when there’s no one using the toilet, acting as a false place for “anxious refugees”. Once seated on the toilet bowl, the proximity sensor will be triggered causing the lights to flash and sounds of paranoia to play. The textured wall in our set up creates an optical illusion along the walls as the shadow bounces off the crevices of the walls. The sound effects start off rather gentle at first but soon amplifies with heavy breathing and loud white noises accompanied by flushing sounds.

 

Process

You can view our process video through the link below:

“Anxiety Toilet Process”

 

Materials

  • Arduino Board
  • Bread Board
  • IR Sensor (SHARP GP2Y0A41SK0F)
  • RGB LED Strip (2812B)
  • External Power Source
  • Wires
  • Crocodile Clips

 

Instructions

Step 1

Connect IR sensor in the following sequence to Arduino Board:

Red Wire (VCC) to 5V

Black Wire (Earth) to Ground

Yellow Wire (DATA) to A0

 

Step 2

Connect 2812B LED Strip into the Board and to the External Power Source:

Red Wire (VCC) to + of Outlet

Yellow/White Wire (Earth) to – of Outlet

Green Wire (DATA) to Pin 3

 

Step 3

Connect to the Arduino to your Device and link it to Processing for Music to be played via Minim.

 

Reflection

This project has allowed me to truly understand the connection between tech, design and interaction. 

It has shown me what a key role interaction plays in design. Often we end up design “for ourselves”, in the sense that if something works for us we assume it works for everyone. However, though the various project tests in class I came to realise how different people often had different reactions and actions to the same given object or space. I realised how we can’t simply expect people to interact and do things in a certain way, instead, we had to understand the behaviours of people and readjust our designs to them.

It was also really interesting dabbling into the world of coding. In all honesty, most codes still seem like a foreign language to me. However, they are no longer a complete blur, I can now understand some simple codes and their functions. Although coding was really tough, it was really satisfying to see the code work and I think that made all the work worth it.

This project and module has really broadened my knowledge of the interaction design field and has made me much more curious and appreciative for interaction design. 

Despite all the challenges along the way, I am glad there was Lei to guide us through all the disruptions in our codes and lastly, I am thankful for having a great group mate, En Qi. We were able to split the work evenly and were on the same page throughout the project.

 

 

You can view our showreel through the link below:

“Anxiety Toilet”

 

 

A group effort with:

En Qi

Form and Visualisation Final Assignment

“In”

 

“In”, like its name, encourages people to come in and immerse themselves with nature and design.

The two organic shaped buildings in “In”, were created with a minimalist style and approach in order for them to stay subtle, giving the exterior nature elements the main focus of the space.

The larger building in “In” is an Environment Design museum that will exhibit and feature design works of environmental sustainability, while the small building will be a reception space. The exterior area is meant for the people to simply enjoy the natural elements while relaxing.

 

You can view my Design Report through the link below:

“Design Report”

 

Graphic Form Project 2B CPJ

Locale : The Hougang Type

 

Brief

For this project, we were tasked to create an A5 size 8pp zine that explores the neighbourhoods we lived in. We were to showcase our neighbourhoods from our own perspective. 

I have lived in Hougang all my life and I thought that this would be a great opportunity for me to really display what I knew about Hougang as well as what I loved about the place. Twenty-one years in the same place is a really long time. I lived, breathe, studied and grew up in Hougang. Most of my fondest memories of my friends and family are all within walking distance in the vicinity of my neighbourhood. 

Hougang is my home.

 

Ideation

Honestly, I actually enjoy taking aimless walks around my neighbourhood with some music on, and I often opt to walk from place to place within my neighbourhood if I wasn’t in a rush for time or when the weather wasn’t too crazy. One thing I often conclude was that Hougang was really a hidden beauty.

I feel that Hougang still retains much of my childhood nostalgic interpretations of Singapore, especially in the type. To be brutally honest, the type in Hougang is nowhere near any graphic designer’s standard, however it authenticity and old “school-ness” is what makes it so simple and beautiful. The handwritten signs and Chinese calligraphed shop branding have their own uniqueness and I felt this was something I wanted people who do not live and live in Hougang to take a second look at and appreciate. In this day and age, we are often so preoccupied in our own worlds, looking at those tiny rectangle screens, we call phones to look around and appreciate the beauty that surrounds us, it was even proven in the survey I conducted for research where 62% of those surveyed admitted to being oblivious to their neighbourhoods.

Therefore, my idea was to create a zine that appreciated the type in Hougang. The zine was titled, The Hougang Type, which connotates two meanings. The typography in Hougang and the type of beauty in Hougang. 

 

Inspiration

For the design of my zine, I drew inspiration from the concept of brutalism. Brutalism in graphic design is a myriad of systems fonts, irritatingly positioned images with no distinctive hierarchy and a lack of symmetry. It was basically any design that could evoke a headache.

In other words, when you encounter a brutalist design, you certainly won’t miss it. And this was the same view I wanted people to have for the type in Hougang. Despite the visually offensive, raw and retro designs of Hougang’s type, I didn’t want people to miss it. Instead, I wanted these “ugly” type to call out for attention in order to be appreciated for their own beauty.

Here are some designs I drew inspiration from…

 

Developments

Of course, despite knowing what I wanted to do and how I wanted to do it, actually doing it is much more difficult and the results are often unpredictable. 

Below are my developments in design…

 

Cover

Initially, I wanted a purely type-based cover. However, after consultations with Shirley, she explained how a pure type cover may be a bit unattractive as compared to a vibrant cover with imagery.

First Spread

For the first spread, I wanted it to be an introduction to the zine as well as a guide on how to appreciate type. If one followed the flow chart, it is actually a step by step guide. At first, I planned to simply use contrasting typefaces to create the design however by doing so I was not really using typography from Hougang and that would defeat a zine that main purpose was to showcase the special type in Hougang. Thus, I brought my camera and went all over the neighbourhood looking for the words I needed.

Second & Third Spread

Initially, I was going to split the second and third spread into either two of the categories, type in architecture, type in people and type in things. However, after shooting the images I came to realise that there were a lot of overlaps within these three categories and eventually decided to use both spreads to simply showcase the unusual and beautiful type hidden in signages and communications in Hougang. 

Back Cover

The back cover was pretty straightforward. I wanted a clear key line map that matched the style of my zine to show and guide viewers through Hougang to view the beautiful hidden type. 

 

Conclusion

All in all, despite the sleepless nights and photoshoots under the scorching sun, this was a really fun project where I got to go around my favourite place in Singapore. My very own neighbourhood, Hougang.

In all honesty, I kinda believe this assignment was designed for us, who may have lost touch with the places we grew up in as we have grown older. This is especially relevant for those who may live on campus, far away from their homes. It definitely gives us a good reason to go back and revisit our homes and surrounding neighbourhoods. the project has also reiterated the importance of paying attention and appreciate our surroundings. I hope this project continues on for the next batches of design students in ADM! 

Project Development Drawings

Ideas

Here are some ideas we came up with for a possible dark object.

1. Staring Eye

2. Breathless Mask

3. Anxiety Toilet

4. Sweaty Palms Glove

5. Cold Sweater

 

How does your audience experience your project?   

Our Anxiety Toilet will be a live size installation where the audience gets to physically be in the space and interact with the various elements that create a sense of anxiety.

 

Is it for a single person to engage with your project or for multiple participants concurrently? 

Our project is only for a single person to engage with at a time.

 

What is the interaction or situation you are creating for your audience? 

We are trying to simulate a sensorial experience of how one would feel under anxiety. Our experience will be created with various interactive elements that will be triggered upon the audience’s interaction with the objects in the toilet. For example, upon closing the door to the toilet, the light will start flashing and turning red. As the participant sits on the toilet bowl, it will trigger a sound of heavy breathing and heartbeats. Lastly, touching the toilet roll will cause it to start erratically unrolling itself making a mess in the toilet. These sensorial elements are designed to enhance the feeling of anxiety in a small space.

 

What is the intention of this interaction? 

Our intention of this experimental interaction is to highlight the rampant amount of people suffering from anxiety in recent years due to external factors such as rising stress level. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 1 in 13 globally suffers from anxiety. The WHO reports that anxiety disorders are the most common mental disorders worldwide.

As a dark object, rather than aiming to help those who suffer from anxiety, our projects aim to rampant the simulated effects and feeling of anxiety. Our sensorial experience makes use of various senses that get triggered during an anxiety effect, hearing, breathing, sight and touch. 

We chose a toilet set up as the space for our project as many who suffer from anxiety often have the urge to go to the toilet, both to use it and as a safe space when in public. Thus, we are redesigning a regular toilet cubicle to change from “safe haven” to an “anxiety nightmare” upon interaction.

 

A group effort with:

En Qi

Research Critique 6 Destructive Games

‘Helena’

 

In 2000, Marco Evaristti, a Copenhagen-based and internationally renowned artist and architect, first exhibited ‘Helena’. ‘Helena’ was an art installation featuring ten blenders, each filled with water housing a goldfish, positioned on an ordinary kitchen table. The blenders were visibly connected to a power source, making the rules of the game implicitly set out from the start. Anyone who pressed the ‘on’ button on the blender would result in the liquidising of a live fish.

This work caused unprecedented controversy and still raises questions about the use of animals in contemporary art. It was considered one of the most controversial artwork of the past twenty years involving live animals.

 

What is the main purpose of the concept of destruction in the arts?

The main purpose of the concept of destruction in the arts is to create value.

While an engineer’s principal objective is to create, artist and researchers have oft reverse this underlying principle and instead explore destruction. Artists explore destruction as a form of raising one’s excitement through irreversible consequences which in turn creates an unusual and personal experience for the participant. The concept of destruction brings about the transience of art. Destruction is able to convert a material value into a social value by generating a conversational artefact that allows the owner to engage with an audience. Thus, destruction inherently not always negative. Destruction could indeed be positive.

We believe that this counter-intuitive insight would not have been possible without reversing the intuitive statement “creation creates value” to the counter-intuitive statement “destruction creates value”.

This is an excerpt from the paper “Destructive Games: Creating Value by Destroying Valuable Physical Objects” by David Eickhoff, Stefanie Mueller, and Patrick Baudisch.

In relation to the concept of destruction to create value, ‘Helena’ applies a similar theory. Marco Evaristti uses the “destruction” of goldfishes to raise awareness on how one acts in regards to one’s sense of morality. There are no rules or instructions at his installation, the blenders are only switched on at a participant’s will, it is entirely up to the participant’s morality to interact with the installation very well knowing that they will probably “destroy” the goldfish.

 

What effect do irreversible consequences have on the participants of the artwork?

The irreversibility of consequences increases the risk and excitement of the destructive experience. The irreversible consequences make a participant’s decision in “real time” and a crucial factor in the outcome of the destruction process. However, research from the paper “Destructive Games: Creating Value by Destroying Valuable Physical Objects” has revealed that the fascination of destruction itself is not enough to outweigh the loss of the participants. Destruction has to create value that exceeds the value of a participant’s damaged objects in order for them to enjoy the artwork. This can be seen through the game of destructive Tug-of-War.

In ‘Helena’, Marco Evaristti categorised his participants into three groups “The idiot, who pushes the button; the voyeur, who loves to watch; and the moralist, who will judge the action”. Despite the difference in actions, each participant still causes the same results and irreversible consequences which in turn becomes a lasting memory for them which they will share in conversations, be it good or bad.

 

What value does destruction bring to the artwork?

The interaction of each participant during the destruction experiment inevitably becomes a lasting memory for them and is bound to affect them positively or negatively. Such a unique experience oft turns into a conversational topic, creating a social value out of the destruction. The value of destruction is what it in creates.

Marco Evaristti believed that it was sometimes necessary to sacrifice one means for the sake of another. To him, the lives of the goldfishes were a necessary means to reveal and raise awareness of the social mechanism that he found out of balance.

 

You can view my presentation through the link below:

Helena

Form and Visualisation Assignment 3

Form Making

 

Orthographic Drawings

 

Process

 

Final Model

 

This assignment was a new experience for me. I have never really made a model before, I had always used photoshop to composite fake model instead. It was a really tedious and time-consuming process, however, the results made it all worth it. Being able to hold and feel what I had imagined in my head whilst drawing the sketches was pretty incredible. I also gained a new appreciation for the surfaces of objects. After sanding my model for days and nights, I was impressed by my own efforts on how smooth I could make the finishing hahaha!

Through this assignment, I learnt the difference between scale in two dimensional and three-dimensional objects. When I sketched out my model in for the orthographic drawing the overall size of my model seemed right, but after building the model, with much sanding, the model still seemed rather big for a hairdryer. This made me understand the reason for building a model and the importance of it.

Micro Project 4

Disobedient Objects

 

The Disobedient Object

Our disobedient object is called the “Aka-Pan”. Aka is Japanese for baby and just like an annoying screaming baby, the “Aka-Pan” screams when it’s hot. This is a contradictory twist on the sole purpose of a cooking pan, to transfer heat and be hot.

The “Aka-Pan” comprises of a temperature sensor and buzzer that is connected through the Arduino. When the temperature is hot, the buzzer rings alerting its user that it does not want to be hot and discourages them from cooking. This can also function as a kind of alarm that reminds forgetful users that they left the pan too hot. The Aka-Pana is both disobedient and thoughtful!

You can view our promotional video through the link below:

“Introducing the Aka-Pan”

 

The Process

We first started our journey to create the Aka-Pan with a simpler exercise, using the temperature sensor to light up and control a LED bulb. We followed an online setup and code. Without any issues, the LED worked and the brightness was indeed influenced by the temperature read on the sensor!

Next, we had to swap out the LED bulb for the buzzer instead. This was when it all got messy and the confidence we gained from the first exercise completely vanished. It was really hard to find a matching setup and code that actually worked. We searched thoroughly online for some help with the setup and codes, however, the online sources we found had either really bad quality photos of setups or really complicated codes which we could not understand, let alone manipulate. We wanted to get a consultation with Lei but all the timings had been booked… We then decided to try combining what we learnt previously in class on the buzzer setup and joint it with a set up for the heat sensor we found online. After much troubleshooting and failed attempts it “kinda” worked! The only problem was that it was reading a degree of like 200 plus? Hahaha. We ended up burning our only temperature sensor and had to call it a day. Turns out, we mixed up a few of the negative and positive pins for some of the elements. After going down to Sim Lim Tower and getting more temperature sensors, we re-essembled the setup with the pins in the right directions and it finally worked.

I think we learned a pretty valuable lesson from all this trial and errors, it is not about copying the codes and following the setups we learn in class. We believe that it is necessary to actually understand how and why it works in order to be able to manipulate it to work for other various projects. 

You can view our making video through the link below:

“Behind the Aka-Pan”

 

The Setup

The is our set up for the Arduino board. 

One thing we realised when attaching the pan is that the crocodile clips can’t touch each other, otherwise it messes up the readings. (You learn something new every day.)

Yes, we also made the stove hahaha.

 

The Code

Well one thing we learnt from using an Aurdino is that open source is really important and can really help dire students like us. Hence, here’s the code we used for our project! Feel free to copy it haha!

 

float sinVal;
int toneVal;
unsigned long tepTimer ;
void setup() {
pinMode(8, OUTPUT);
Serial.begin(9600);

}

void loop() {
int val;
double data;
val = analogRead(0);
data = (double)val * (5 / 10.24);
if (data > 16) {
for (int x = 0; x < 180; x++) {
sinVal = (sin(x * (3.1412 / 180)));
toneVal = 300 + (int(sinVal * 150));

tone(8, toneVal);
delay(1);
}
} else {
(data < 16);
noTone(8);
}
if (millis() – tepTimer > 50)
tepTimer = millis();
Serial.print(“temperature: “);
Serial.print(data);
Serial.println(“C”);

}

 

Despite multiple challenges along the way and a few burns from the temperature sensor, this was a really exciting experiment and we can’t wait for the next one!

 

 

A group effort with:

En Qi

Graphic Form Project 1 CPJ

Image Making Through Type

 

Brief

Create typographic portraits by using your whole name, part of your name, your nickname or your initials to describe your future job. Each solution must consider: choice of typeface, style, size, weight, use of upper and lower case characters as well as space in between the letters. Additionally, the future job had to be something relatively imaginative and wacky.

 

Ideation

There are endless potentialities when it comes to imagining wacky jobs and funky future careers. However, it is not easy to visualise all these jobs. To me, I believed that it was important to choose jobs that had significant elements that aided the creation of a visual interpretation. Additionally, the representative visual should not be too obvious and direct which would take the fun out of the project.

After brainstorming, discussions with friends and scrolling endlessly on the internet for inspiration and ideas, here’s the list of possible wacky jobs I came up with:

Disco Repairman
Vending Machine Operator
Shredded Cheese Authority
Waterslide Tester
Paradise Island Caretaker
Scarecrow Lifeguard
Bread Scientist
Dumpster Diver
Fortune Cookie Writer
Cheese Grafitti Artist
Satan’s Secretary

With further discussion with Shirly and my consultation group, we narrowed down the more possible and interesting options that I should continue working on. The four options were:

Paradise Island Caretaker
Disco Repairman
Fortune Cookie Writer
Satan’s Secretary

 

 

Job 1

Island Paradise Caretaker

 

Moodboard

The visuals of an island and paradise were easy to interpret and visualise, a beach, palm trees and blue waters. However, it was the caretaker part that had me cracking my brains. What exactly does a caretaker do?

After more in-depth research and conversations with fellow peers, I found out that the job scope of a caretaker was one who deals with the cleaning, repairs and the overall protection of the area they are in charge of. I decided to focus on the “cleaning” aspect of a caretaker. To represent it, I used the texture of a sponge and the element of bubbles.

 

Sketches

 

Development

The visuals of an island and paradise were easy to interpret and visualise, a beach, palm trees and blue waters. However, it was the caretaker part that had me cracking my brains. What exactly does a caretaker do?

After more in-depth research and conversations with fellow peers, I found out that the job scope of a caretaker was one who deals with the cleaning, repairs and the overall protection of the area they are in charge of. I decided to focus on the “cleaning” aspect of a caretaker. To represent it, I used the texture of a sponge and the element of bubbles.

I started off choosing a typeface that was more lively, fun and organic to replicate the curves and irregularity of that of an island. The handwriting bubble font I chose was called “bubblegum”. In order to make the text more dynamic and spontaneous, I played with the orientation and positioning of the alphabets. The alphabets were to be the visual representation of paradise islands. I realised the textures of island sand and a sponge was pretty similar, hence to incorporate the aspect of a caretaker I switched up the texture of sand for some sponge texture. Boats, bubbles and island “fun” details were added to make a more elaborate design.

 

 

Job 2

Fortune Cookie Writer

 

Moodboard

For the fortune cookie writer design, I used the fortune cookie itself as the main texture and shape of the type.

 

Sketches

 

Development

After more in-depth research and conversations with fellow peers, I found out that the job scope of a caretaker was one who deals with the cleaning, repairs and the overall protection of the area they are in charge of. I decided to focus on the “cleaning” aspect of a caretaker. To represent it, I used the texture of a sponge and the element of bubbles.

I started off choosing a typeface that was more lively, fun and organic to replicate the curves and irregularity of that of an island. The handwriting bubble font I chose was called “bubblegum”. In order to make the text more dynamic and spontaneous, I played with the orientation and positioning of the alphabets. The alphabets were to be the visual representation of paradise islands. I realised the textures of island sand and a sponge was pretty similar, hence to incorporate the aspect of a caretaker I switched up the texture of sand for some sponge texture. Boats, bubbles and island “fun” details were added to make a more intricate design.

For this fortune cookie writer design, I used the fortune cookie itself as the main texture and shape of the type.

To start, I decided to look for an English typeface that had Chinese characteristics or elements. The font that I chose is called “Shojumaru”. This typeface was perfect for my design. It not only depicted the Chinese elements I was looking for but also had a style that allowed me to integrate the message of a fortune cookie into the type itself.

However, after creating the basic fortune cookie typeface, it seemed rather plain and literal, lacking the aspect of a “writer”. Thus, I took to the internet in search of elements that could represent a “writer”. That’s when the idea of using the features of a typewriter came to me. By taking the part where the typewriter churns out paper and placing it before the fortune cookie note, it created a scene where the note was being written and printed out of each of the cookie.

Initially, I tried using Chinese characters on the fortune notes of the cookies. Unfortunately, the intricacy of the Chinese characters seemed to take away the attention of the whole fortune cookie font, hence, I switched it up for some scribbled handwriting instead.

 

 

Job 3

Disco Repairman

 

Moodboard

To symbolise a disco repairman, the two main features I used in my design are the disco ball and elements of a broken machine that needs to be repaired, such as frayed wires and spoilt gears.

 

Sketches

Development

I used a sans serif typeface called “Chunky Funks”, a regular block-ish font that fits the tiled mirrors of a disco ball. Recreating the reflective mirror texture was really a challenge as I wanted the disco ball to look relatively three-dimensional although they were in a flat design. At first, I tried using an outline to illustrate the tiles but it looked cartoonish and really flat. I recalled the illustrator workshop we had in class and I attempted to use the grain effect we learnt to give the tiles texture, highlights and shadows. This made the tiles look way more real and “reflective”.

I tried playing with the hierarchy of the alphabets using scale and position to imitate the effect of the disco type being in three-dimensional space. Lastly, to give the true effect of disco, I added the lighting effects!

 

 

Job 4

Satan’s Secretary

 

Moodboard

For this design, I wanted to create a comical looking representation of Satan as I felt that my chosen career, Satan’s Secretary, was poking fun at him. To represent Satan I felt that it was crucial to include the colour red and as a representation of a secretary, it was long nails. 

 

Sketches

Using fingers to form a text was really difficult and I had to sketch it out multiple times before the fingers finally looked “correct”. 

 

Development

I started with the base using a cursive typeface called “BellaFree” and added on the details and textures of a finger. I first did this in illustrator, however, the vector graphic effect made it a little too “cute” so I switched over to Photoshop to use a sharper pressure brush that would make the type “fiercer” and more organic like a finger. The pressure brush also helped to create more definition and realistic finger wrinkles.

For the background, I decided to use the “eternal flames of hell”. Basically just fires to represent Satan and his home, hell. 

 

Conclusion

This was a really exciting project where I was able to use my full imagination to create both a new typeface design and a “never-before-discovered career”. It stretched my ability to think out of the box by learning to adapt textures into type. This assignment was also a good way to introduce type as it got us to understand the elements and features of different styles of typography as well as the emotion a specific type can depict.

The biggest challenge I faced in this project was probably coming up with the elements that could symbolise the jobs. It was also really challenging compositing the various elements together such that they would tell a cohesive story and portray the wacky job I had chosen. However, I believe challenges are meant to help us grow and learn, without the feeling of frustration and desperation we will never learn to adapt and move forward. Form the class presentation, I also noticed multiple of my classmates were using different techniques to create three-dimensional type and that is something I had not thought of doing. If given the chance, I think I would have wanted to explore more on techniques and try out more different youtube tutorials. I believe it is through such assignments that we get to explore and try out new things.