February 2019

There were 5 posts published in February 2019 (this is page 1 of 1).

Research Critique 4 – Uncomfortable Interactions

Uncomfortable interactions are defined as

“actions that cause a degree of suffering to the user”,

as defined by the reading. These sufferings can either be on a physical a mental level. Most of the time, uncomfortable interactions come as an unintentional result and is often viewed negatively. However, the reading states that

“the potential value of uncomfortable interactions as part of designing cultural experiences”

could become benefits to us due to its positive outcomes towards the society, entertainment, and enlightenment. This is provided that such interactions are well calculated and done in an ethically acceptable framework.

 

Image showing the different types of benefits of Uncomfortable interactions.

 

An example I would like to use to illustrate the benefits of these uncomfortable interactions would be the Desert Rain established in 1999 by Blast Theory that uses such interactions to achieve positive outcomes towards enlightenment (mainly) and sociality as reflections on our actions. It is a war game that involves virtual reality aims to highlight the problem of what mass media reported (virtual) versus the reflection of the real world (reality) especially during the period of the Gulf War.

Players had to make it through the game by finding their targets. Throughout Desert Rain, there are also numerous moments where these uncomfortable interactions are established strategically to bring about maximum benefits.

“Human suffering is a powerful and recurring theme among artworks,”

Desert Rain uses the constant play on sufferings by the victims and casualties through the game to evoke discomfort, fear, and guilt. This leads us to a specific perspective to view the work, allowing us to reflect and empathize, prompting us to find a deeper connection to the game, allowing greater understanding. This would eventually allow a form of enlightenment among the 6 players.

 

Image illustrating the different types of Uncomfortable Interactions and their methods.

Image illustrating the flow of Desert Rain Game

 

These forms of uncomfortable interaction can take place in the form of visceral, culture, control and intimate interactions. Through Desert Rain, it was obvious that cultural discomfort was experienced due to the dark cultural associations of the Gulf War and its casualties.

The game pushes the participants to make moral decisions. In Section 5, the act of pushing away the numbers representing the casualties suggested the act of turning a blind eye on the humanity. The players might not have considered ethical consequences until reflected upon.

Through designing devices that bring back direct memories of the unfortunate events, a sense of discomfort is evoked. In section 6, the revelation where the hunted targets were disclosed to be victims of the Gulf War, interviewed on how ‘real’ the experience of the Gulf War was in the very room the players were in. Emotions of guilt could be evoked from these moments since the players would reflect on how they cruelly hunted down the targets who were victims of the War.

In section 7, the 100,000 grains of sand were given was meant for the participants to reflect on the 100,000 Iraqi casualties and the decisions made by the governments in the Gulf War.

Overall, uncomfortable interactions are effective in provoking thoughts and reflections resulting in enlightenment in the society. The use of a virtual reality space and these uncomfortable interactions have allowed the participants to reflect that what they see such as the targets, may not necessary be the truth.

Presentation: https://prezi.com/view/MVDcz69zh8omox4zH4Nt/

References:

Desert Rain

http://multiplejournalism.org/case/desert-rain

Micro Project 3: Together Split

For this micro project, my group tried out 2 different concepts that were conducted at the location of the sitting areas near the sunken plaza. Regarding our chosen location, we did not have much time to decide as we were very much focused on the task at hand. Thinking back, filming outdoors may have not been the best choice due to the strong winds and the distractions as people walked around.

Work 1 – using 4 screens

The intention of our work was to recreate a “new face” using different features of 4 different people’s face. We wanted to showcase how a single feeling such as “happy, sad and angry” could be expressed differently for every different person. However, the outcomes were not as successful as we imagined it to be due to the face that it was extremely difficult to coordinate and align our faces properly to form a solid image of a “new face” using each of our features. In the end, we ended up getting a disfigured face.

Work 2 – using 2 screens

Since we didn’t manage to align our faces properly during the first try, we decided that we should film for each other instead. Hence, we quickly made the decision to film 2 of us doing the same action, while the other 2 parties will be able to adjust and make the decision for us instead. We first tried to eat bread as 1 person and then put on lip balm as 1 person. Although it was still unsuccessful, there were more scenes that were better coordinated as compared to the first time, making the video seem more cohesive and convincing.

Overall, this project was challenging because a lot of coordination was required of us while we made use of this new medium. It was also frustration at times since what we wanted to create often do not match up to what the actual reality was.

Which project did you feel you had the most creative control? Why?

I think the project which I had the most creative control was Micro Project 1. Since the project largely depended on individual decisions, I was free to decide where I wanted to take the photo, how I wanted to take the photo, what kind of caption and filters to use. Whereas for project 2, despite the limitations given to make a song, the fate of the final product largely depended on the participants. While in project 3, it largely depended on the members of the group to decide on an idea together that we could agree and work on.

Which project had the most unpredictable outcome? Why?

Micro Project 2 had the most unpredictable outcome. For Project 2, the responses were largely based on the participants. Furthermore, each answer given from the participants to form the lyrics were very different because all of them had very different characters and thought processes that would make their final product different. Since all the styles of our participants are different, it is difficult to predict what they might say as well as their intentions when an outcome is presented.

Which project best illustrates the concepts of DIWO & Open–Source? Why?

I think the project that best illustrates DIWO and Open Source was Micro Project 2. Project 2 allowed us to really interact with other people to create something together and we were able to decide the considerable pool of people we wanted for our interactions. Creating the song in project 2 thoroughly left the fate of the decisions to our classmates who helped us create the song despite some limitations given. It also broke away from the traditional ideas of a single artist and numerous audience, instead it felt more like numerous artist and numerous audiences as compared to project 1 and 3.