Prototype 1-Tension Test
This test is for the project of a motion sculpture: machine arms stretching and relieving strings that construct a human shape, like a dance with tension.
This user test is to answer these two questions:
1. Can people actually feel nervous and relieved?
2. Can the tension and sudden relief make people engage?
The process
1. Ask the person to watch an edited short video of a ballon floating toward a cactus.
2. Give the following questions:
How do you feel during the video?
How engaging is the video? (0-10)
Do you feel nervous when the balloon flies to the cactus? (No/Subtly/Observably)
Do you feel relieved when the balloon flies away? (No/Subtly/Observably)
The result
I did the test with ten people.
In the first question (How do you feel during the video?), most people mentioned "surprising," "curious," and "tension." Three of them mentioned "surreal."
In the rest three question:
Conclusion
Most people said they felt tension before I asked them about the tension level, which indicates the tension feeling in the video is strong. This is also shown in the result of the third question. This video offers a relatively high level of engagement which is, at least, partially promoted by the strong feeling of tension. This tension and engagement part worked as I expected.
The future work is to strengthen the relieving feeling as the possible danger disappears.
Prototype 2 - Blind and Deaf Test
This test is for the project of a sound-proof and light-proof little room. Try to give the audience an experience from extremely strong sensual stimuli to gradually losing the senses of vision and audition.
This test is to test how people feel when being not able to hear and see.
The Process
I prepared earplugs, earmuffs, and an eye cover.
I asked people to wear them all and sit for 10 minutes.
Then I asked about how they felt in the 10 minutes.
The Result
Here is my own response:
It was a super quiet condition. I could not hear anything. However, I felt strong tinnitus. Those high-frequent sounds did not get through my ear but happened in my brain. I can also hear my joints' sounds when I move. I felt my breath getting heavier after several minutes. I also felt nausea and a little anxiety. Interestingly, after these ten minutes, I felt less tired, although the process is not comfortable.
The other three people I did the test with also gave similar feedback. Only one person said he was comfortable with the condition. He and another person did not have nausea.
Conclusion
The result of the test is interesting. The experience is torturing but also like a kind of meditation for some people. It is pretty sure that the loss of sound and vision can dramatically affect people.
However, this test does not work in the same way as the project will do. The earmuffs and earplugs did not only black sounds from outside but also those sounds from "inside the room." A further test is necessary.
Prototype 3 - The Look
This test is for the project of bringing philosophers' mental experiments and ideas to the physical world. The specific work this user test relates to is "The Look."
The Look is a concept in Sartre's theory. He believes that under the look of others, a person will be reminded about the existence of self. However, this image of self is transcended by others' transcendent. This self will be closer to other peoples' opinion but not the person's own opinion.
This workpiece is to represent Sartre's idea in the physical context. The original idea is to have a room of faces and fake people staring at the audience's standing position. By these human-like but inactive objects, the audience's self-consciousness is emphasized without being transcended.
In this case, this user test is to answer these questions:
1. Does the look really remind a person about the existence of self?
2. If the look is from an inactive object, which means it should not have transcendent, will people feel something different?
The Process
1. Ask the person to look at a picture of someone looking at the person.
2. Ask the following questions:
How do you feel about it?
Do you have the feeling of being gazed at? (No/Subtly/Observably)
Now imagine there is a person gazing at you. Do you feel your existence is emphasized? (No/Subtly/Observably)
3. Show the next picture.
4. Ask the following questions:
Now, here is a paper dinosaur starring at you. Do you feel your existence is emphasized? (No/Subtly/Observably)
Now imagine there is a fake person (looked very like a real person but you know it's fake) gazing at you. Do you feel your existence is emphasized? (No/Subtly/Observably)
Is there any difference between being gazed at by a real person and a fake person?
The Result
I did the test with ten people.
In the first question (How do you feel about it?), most people said that they do not any special feelings.
The result of the rest:
For the last question (Is there any difference between being gazed at by a real person and a fake person?), most people said the real person's gaze is stronger.
Conclusion
Since everyone said a person's gaze makes them feel their existences are emphasized, we can conclude that Sartre's idea of the look is proved.
However, the fake person's gaze is much less strong than the real person's. In the test, a person said when the picture of the human face is magnified, the gazed feeling is much stronger. Therefore, redesigning the size of the human faces might be a solution. Besides, a person said the fake person's gaze is inactive and it will be stronger if it can follow people's movements. In this way, instead of having a static position for the audience, a tracking gaze may improve the result.
