Experiments in Art and Programming

Description

This project is an experiment in wireless urban navigation through the use of architectural icons. The purpose of this project is to question pre-existing forms of navigation (such as mapping) by challenging the individuals' spatial perception. Users are given a series of thirteen images and the assignment to navigate a predetermined path throughout the UCSD campus.

Openwave phone simulator, used for testing

Concept

An important aspect of the current mapping system (use of aerial views) is that it orients the user's location relative to other objects, i.e. other buildings, but fails to provide an idea of what the user might see. It is analogous to watching a mouse run a maze. We watch with omnipotent eyes and the ability to see around corners. But the roles are often reversed in our everyday forms of navigation. This project provides the user with the perspective of what they would see on the same dimensional plane while trying to reach a destination point.

What is the potential for new forms of navigation in this wireless age? Why are we so bound to one form of archaic representation? The capabilities of wireless technology are rapidly progressing, so with it we should also develop useful and accurate methods that compliment our technology. This project is an exploratory expression of such methods and seeks to challenge the way in which we utilize our knowledge of human perception.

Process

The initial intention of this project was to be more of an absurdist performance where the user is given abstracted building silhouettes and told to navigate throughout the campus using only these simple geometric shapes. While photographing campus buildings I saw the possibility for this project to evolve into a more practical tool for navigation.

Certain problems arose in the building documentation process that led to the concept revision. First, in certain areas of the campus, buildings are tightly compacted so it was difficult to get a clear picture of an entire face of a building. Which made me consider the user's experience while navigating. While walking, they would not be able to see the whole North, South, West, or East facing side of a building. To compensate, I created the images in perspective, both to get the entire building, and also to more closely imitate what the user would see.

Second, some buildings are more symmetrical than others. If the user were given only a black and white image, they would be unable to determine which side of the building to go to. This led to the need to add architectural details to orient the user in physical space.

Evolution of Building Icon

Technical

The main software written for this project was for my personal use. It consisted of a GUI interface that would allow me to easily insert user session data into a mySQL database by opening a database connector (written in Java). The GUI layout was created using simple html. The parameters were then passed to a JSP which would utilize Java methods in order to access MySQL.

GUI interface for inserting data into MySQL database

Icons