DES IGN JOUR NAL PEIYI XIA
INDEX
Insights: New technology and physical world.
03
Insights: Navigating.
05
Visual Research: Navigating Signs.
07
Visual Research: Google Street View.
11
Experiments: Memory and Tactility.
13
Experiments: Collage of the perception.
15
Experiments: Dominance and Reliance.
17
Experiments: Virtual Journey.
19
Outputs: Gone Astray. The Video.
21
Outputs: Gone Astray. The Booklets.
27
03
insights
New technology and physical world. We google everyday for ephemeral information, route directions on virtual maps, indirect experiences from other people. What do we really want to retrieve when we are constantly and compulsively searching for excessive information on internet? Maybe it is the communication of human contacts, fulfilment of the disconnection between our sense and feeling, the realm of certainty and dependence. Technology and is changing our way of feeling the physical world. However, could the virtual world provide us the ultimate solution to our physical needs?
05
insights
Navigating. Geographic information on the navigating websites or Apps such as Google maps, City Mapper is simplified and symbolised by shapes and colours. These digitalised maps (depicted on left page) became more dynamic and informative and tend to depict as much information as possible. They may involve transportation status, weather forecast, even politics and provide users information beyond the simple function of moving from one place to another. When we navigating, we will receive optional virtual journeys generated by the navigation providers based on all the information they can get, however during these process, will it diminishes our sense of direction and the perception towards unknown area?
07
Visual Research
Navigating Signs. I was thinking about the physical navigation system we encounter everyday. From the personal perspective, the buildings can be a significant element while we try to locate ourselves in a new place. Road signs (left page) however can be a more systematic approach in navigation.
09
Navigating Signs. From the signs I collected (both pages) on the streets, I noticed each sign has its own texture and character responding to the particular environment. Some signs are painted, some are metal and some were engraved. The different material gives the sign a physical touch. Signs on the wall, in the middle of the drive way or on the pedestrian path are all very distinctive.
11
Google Street View. I did receive the perception of getting and knowing somewhere from these systematic categorised recorded images - virtual navigating.
13
experiments
Memory and tactility. When new to a place, I’m easily to be affected by those physical details. I create memories of them. Even it’s only the pavement of a small lane or signs on the street corner. A certain emotion will be attached to the new area, either it is an unfamiliarity or is a clueless excitement. The experiment begins with the hand drawing of the map according to my memory and perception of the unfamiliar place – the surreal road map of London. I still remember the days when I just landed in the city, I had no idea about the direction at all and the routes were chaotic to me. The tactility and the pattern of the city contain a certain degree of distinction and déjà vu. The map (left page) can be a representation of the astray in mental world. The position and direction of the streets are misleading and the locations of well know venues are incorrect.
15
experiments
Collage of the perception. It was another experiment (left page) about way finding experience relying on navigating Apps. I tried to use cutting graphic images from magazine or newspapers making collage as an approach to deliver the feeling of vague perception or subconsciousness of the places, locations and orientations.
17
Dominance and Reliance. This experiment was based on the keywords such as ‘commanding’, ‘manipulating’, ‘dominating’, ‘affect’ and ‘assisting’ of nowadays overwhelmingly new navigating technology. To me, the more we feel the affect from new technology, the more reliance we will have and the more unfamiliar the world will be seen to us. The work (both page) with direction info on black sheet stuck on the landscape images collected from newspapers tries to imitate the dominating feeling.
00:00:09
00:04:09
00:05:05
00:08:09
00:09:06
00:10:06
00:16:07
00:17:01
00:19:05
19
00:06:02
00:07:05
00:08:05
00:12:07
00:13:03
00:16:00
00:24:01
00:25:06
00:38:03
Virtual Journey. The stop motion was made of hundreds of screen captures from Google. It tends to visualise the virtual journey on Google Street View which mixed the indirect experience of digital way finding and the indirect memory and affect from the real journey to the specific places.
21
Outputs
Gone Astray. The Video. Quote from an essay by Marc Prensky, ‘Those of us who were not born into the digital world but have become fascinated by and adopted many or most aspects of the new technology are Digital Immigrants.’ As the generation experienced pre-digitalised navigation system, we may always compare the new technology assisted methods to our physical experiences. However, to the generation grow up with computers, mobile devices and internet, navigating devices and apps are widely used and depended upon, the reliance mentally and physically increased and secured by the usage of digital mapping. This video is an exploration and representation of our reliance on the navigating technology.
00:09:12
00:31:05
01:02:14
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01:16:02
01:47:09
Part One. This part (both page) is about the lost in the city and the connection with the people in physical world. Visually, the black banner in the middle of the screen indicates censor board. The typeface used as an imitation represents technology.
01:52:02
02:08:09
02:16:03
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03:27:09
03:49:11
Part Two. This part (both page) of video is about the interference created by our reliance of technology upon the perception we receive from nature.
27
Gone Astray. The Booklets. Each of the booklet (left page) from the set depicts a personal experience of mobile technology in navigating or photo shooting. As the part of the Gone Astray project, the visual layout (right page) was based on the same system as in video.
March. 2015 Peiyi Xia
SED NG I RUOJ LAN 2015