Cozy + Corner + Lily = ???
??? was the the first impression that I got after hitting the word on Random Word Generator. Coincidence? I think not! But even after getting the word last week (at around Thursday-ish), I had zero idea what I was going to do for this prototype. That is, until the discussion I had with Professor Khulood Alawadi on Tuesday. Before I recap the discussion, let’s take a look at this week’s prototype first:
Essentially the way this prototype works is by "confusing" the audience first when they arrive at the space. The projection is a design by Noto, so I did not delve in TouchDesigner this week (sadge emote here) albeit using it. The focus of this week’s prototype is to try as best as possible to capture the vibes we are going for in the final product, plus adding some flavors of the keyword here and there.
New: Texture and Smell
This prototype focuses on supplying the audience with more than just visuals by integrating touch and scemt into the space. It is unfortunate that I was unable to get actual lilies or scents, but the keyword did gave me an idea to use something that the audience can interact with. So here’s how it works:
The audience will arrive at the scene looking at the swirling chaos in front (or top) of them. As they approach closer to the area, they will start to smell scents coming from diffuser. By the time they reach the diffuser, an object (baloon in this case) is present for them touch. By squishing the oobleck baloon, we hope that the audience will feel satisfaction after being sensory blasted.
What did I learn?
From this simple prototype, there’s a few things that I learned which could be crucial for things going forward:
- To paint light, you must be in the darkness. Something that I did not anticipate beforehand is how light works in a (almost) completely dark room. The first thing that came into my mind is what if the audience is afraid of the dark? Think about all the emotions invoked from a dark room. Second, the projector was bright enough to lit up the entire corners and desk and whatnots. Think about how the light bounces, and the warmth/cold it has could allow super different vibe.
- Impress within three seconds. When my suitemate arrived from the outside, the first reaction he got was like:
"the frick?"and before spotting me in the corner he approached the baloons but did not touch them. Because the room is dark, the balloons were not visible enough and there was not incentive to touch it. After spotting me would then he began asking questions. Instructions in this case is important for the users to be able to experience without asking questions. - Feedback. What happens when the user does something? In this prototype, because of the pressing time (since I have to do it at night while my roomies are away and dark environment), providing a reaction from the user’s action is a must. I did not have it this time, so the impression was like “meh” coming from them.
About chairs, spaces, and us
On 23 September 2025, around 13:00 - 13:30 I had a discussion with Professor Khulood Alawadi, a professor specializing in Design Engineering regarding spaces and calm. These are some of the conclusion that I gathered from the talk:
Calm = using all your sense(s) to reach that state
So in the previous week when discussing calm from an artsy point of view, we were circling back and forth in the very conceptual realm. When people were asked what makes them calm, the reactions were very diverse. One thing that Professor Khulood emphasized was two things: Calm is a state, and that you can reach it only if you put everything (senses in this case) to that state.
How might we create a space within a space?
When thinking about our capstone, think about how it is going to be placed later on. On the discusson with Professor Nimrah, we had a new idea about using tents. When the user enter this tent, they are inside a space, and when interacting with the object in the center, they are entering another space.
How do we measure calm? What technologies entail?
Although it seems subjective, relax and calm is quite synonymous in some ways, which means there are triggers and quantifiable outcomes. Professor Khulood told me to research about this topic going further.
Things that bring calm:
- Colors, these are pretty universal but DO NOT assume that it stays so all the time because it is bound by cultures and norms
- Noise are very subjective, some might find “Ocean Noises” calming, but others could be agitated by it a lot
- One way to implement sound is to actually do noise canceling.
- If we are going with the tent / closed space, then the design of the object should cancel some of the noises already
- Scents and smells are insanely helpful in bringing people to the calm state
- They can be used to “manipulate emotions”
- Object arrangement is also important! Think about areas or zones within the space and how it dictates the “vibe” of the place
- For example, in a mall, the jewelry area could be very quiet and little movement compared to kids area with noises and bright lights
- Texture and Feel is super important to relax muscles
- Squishies, seatings (such as Majlis)* can make people feel relaxed
- Why do we feel comfortable in our own room or home? Because there are zero expectations and surveillance
Panopticon Foucault. Essentially, when we are by ourselves, then would we be freeeeeee~
Always provide people CHOICE when bringing themselves to a calm state
Last but not least, our “corner” could be a congregation of multiple calm triggers to bring people to their relaxed state
We have done several prototypes and ideation to this point, and even if some failed, it doesn’t mean we don’t gain anything. Failing is a good thing early on here because that means there’s still so much to be done before we materialize our ideas. I’m excited to what the future holds tbh.