Below is a collection of exercises, notes, writing and more activities done in class. as well as some further written reflections on the lecture. This is to better understand and reflect on the content providing this week and speculate on how these topics can help me define a practical design process for my next assignments.
Types of resonance involving our body and mind:
Among the many meanings and metaphors or Resonance, we can now see this word as a synonym for "thresholds/zones of awareness". The 3 main areas of Resonance of awareness are as follows:
Sympathetic Resonance = Sonic vibrations transforming into mechanical energy as objects of an environment absorb sound waves and start to vibrate and rattle simultaneously on the same wavelength, intensity and frequency of loud sound waves that induced those vibrations in the first place.
Limbic Resonance = Brain chemistry and awareness (autonomic nervous system and homeostasis). Induces subconscious and/or conscious physiological responses to emotions, eating patterns, behavioural patterns and sensory information.
Stochastic Resonance = synchronisation of subconscious and conscious thoughts. The threshold between these two activities in our mind is open, and subconscious thoughts are free to move in our conscious mind, so that we can grasp them, understand them, share them and put them into practice.
Image taken from Week 1.2 Lecture slides
Emotional Colour Resonance Prompt Exercise
In order to explore the relationships between colour, meaning, resonance and emotional effect, I took part in this individual activity in class. The exercises includes different stages which are briefly addressed and explained below.
STEP 1: For each primary emotion (shown at the centre of the wheel), I picked 2 secondary and 2 tertiary sub-categories of related emotions.
Wheel of emotions. Photo taken from https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OoJlvFOAF-hTniwoOusP6A0LTrQo5CyuArFSKPtkTTw/edit
The emotions I chose to represent through colour are listed and explained below (check the screenshot above for more information and colour details):
1) PRIMARY DIVISION: HAPPY/JOYFUL: secondary divisions: powerful (tertiary: courage, creativity) + content (tertiary: free and joyful)
2) PRIMARY DIVISION: SURPRISED: secondary divisions: confusion( tertiary: disillusion, perplexion) + excited (tertiary: eager and energetic)
3) PRIMARY DIVISION: BAD : secondary divisions: stressed (tertiary: out of control, overwhelmed) + tired (tertiary: unfocussed, sleepy)
4) PRIMARY DIVISION: FEARFUL : secondary division: anxious (tertiary: overwhelmed, worried) + insecure (tertiary: inadequate, inferior)
5) PRIMARY DIVISION: ANGRY : secondary divisions: frustrated (tertiary: infuriated, annoyed) + distant (tertiary: numb, withdrawn)
6) PRIMARY DIVISION: DISGUSTED : secondary divisions: disapproving (tertiary: judgemental, embarassed) + repelled (tertiary: horrified, hesitant)
7) PRIMARY DIVISION: SAD : secondary divisions: hurt (tertiary: embarassed, disappointed) + despair (tertiary: grief, powerless) After that, I also associated a different RGB colour to each of those emotions (see screenshot below).
STEP 2: I have associated a different RGB colour to each emotion, based on the emotional resonance it triggers in me, and how it makes me feel.
Generally speaking, dull, desaturated and opaque colours have a slightly negative emotional valence for me. Therefore I have associated these colours to feelings of sadness, disappointment, confusion and embarrassment. Bright, shiny, light and saturated colours inspire a positive emotional valence in me, so I tend to associate them with happier feelings (courage, energy, joy). The only exception I noticed after completing the exercise, was that I associated bright, saturated, reddish colours to negative emotions such as anger and anxiety. While completing the activity, I wasn't aware of this. However, after completing the exercise and reflecting on it later, I realised that I associated brighter colours to these negative emotions, because even though they are negative, they still induce a very powerful, highly-energetic feeling when we feel angry, infuriated or stressed out.
STEP 3: In order to further reflect on the relation between these emotions and colours, I also tried to find words and adjectives to describe their resonance (environmental-based, haptics and/or sonic related adjectives that remind me of those colours and emotions).
Below is a list of terms, descriptions and adjectives I wrote down for each emotion, in relationship to its colour and resonance.
RESONANCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL-RELATED WORDS TO DESCRIBE CHOSEN EMOTIONS AND COLOURS, AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP (haptics, visuals, sonic related adjectives):
1) PRIMARY DIVISION: HAPPY/JOYFUL ()
secondary divisions:
a) powerful (rough surface, deep, high, strong, orchestral, ensamble, steady, wood, presto, prestissimo music tempo)
b) content (soft, bouncy, free, translucent, shiny, allegro, vivace, presto, prestissimo music tempo)
tertiary divisions:
a) courage (high-pitch, loud, speed, strong, dry, steady, shiny, fast, prestissimo, hot, sustained, frequency)
b) creativity (rainbow, wet, free, barrier-free, multi-coloured, soft, cosy, andante, moderato music tempo, jump/embossment, air, clean, secure and insecure at the same time, unbalanced)
c) free (open, air, thin, intangible, ocean, stars, universe, barrier-free, upwards, light, rarefied, modulation, no pattern, abstract, smooth)
d) joyful (high-pitched, curves, jump, warm, round, open, rhythm, sustained, swift, smooth)
2) PRIMARY DIVISION: SURPRISED ()
secondary divisions:
a) confusion (cloudy, opaque, thick, dirty, rough, cloudy, hard, complex, empty, lost, solitude, limited, white noise, noisy, rainy, overcrowded, sensory overload, noise pollution)
b) excited (hot, bubbles, air, light, upwards, bouncy, paper, cotton, soft, swift, free, open)
tertiary divisions:
a) disillusion (cloudy, quiet, rainy, wet, puddle, stumbling, soft, slippery, dropping, falling, tricky, steps, broken, transparent, backwards, breakable, fragile, delicate, muffled sound, muted)
b) perplexion (foggy, cloudy, closed, fragile, glass, reflection, harmed, hazard, attempt, curvy lines)
c) eager (strong, determined, will, can, impatient, enthusiasm, bubble, flexible, open, fervent, fervid, ardent, hot, high-temperature, burning, smoke, air)
d) energetic (sparkling, strong, quick, fast, thick, gold, metals, rock, deep, upwards, circle, sprint, free bird, freedom, prestissimo music tempo, ardent, fire, burning, risk, hazard)
3) PRIMARY DIVISION: BAD ()
secondary divisions:
a) stressed: (smoke, pollution, fast-paced, traffic, sleepless, unhealthy, weak, bending, breakable, thin line, aching, cloudy, foggy, rumbling, running in circles, closed, habit, cage, limits, barrier, rough surface, strict, powerless, noisy, rowdy, rough, turbulent, unclear, brain fog, confusion, unable, uncertain, mixed)
b) tired: (weak, weary, unhappy, soft, fabrics, sleepy, blunt, blurry)
tertiary divisions:
a) out of control: (broken, weak, over-crowded, public, precarious, shaky, breakable, thin line, messy, smoke, gas, uncontrollable, noisy, impulsive, intermittent noise, white noise, traffic, construction noises, scratchy)
b) overwhelmed: (foggy, drowning, deep, downwards, backwards, flood, swamp, dirty, unclear, opaque, thick, impassable, impenetrable, confusion, brain fog, lost, heavy, burden, superiority and inferiority)
c) unfocussed : (blurry, loss, indistinct, blunt, tired, sleepy, unable, brain fog, impenetrable)
d) sleepy: (drowsy, languid, hypnotic, illusion, foggy, wet, smooth)
4) PRIMARY DIVISION: FEARFUL (scratchy, loud, noisy, high-pitch, apprehension engine, slippery, changing, evolving, unknown, dark, void, vortex, inferior, danger, wild, irrational , brain fog, anxious, rumbling, thunder, lightning, offensive)
secondary division: a) anxious (dark, gloomy, spooky, smoky, foggy, unknown, stressed out, pensive, overthinking, irrational, closed, empty, opaque, intangible, invisible, heavy, burden, scratchy, modulation, wavy, running in circles, weak, competition, inferior, complex, maze, labyrinth, lost, heart beat, fast, fragile, powerless, glass, thin, strengthless, unsteady, unspoken, blood, uproar, crash, uncommunicative, cognitive distortion)
b) insecure (fragile, breakable, glass, paper, sheet, foil, crystal, inferiority, closed, shy, speechless, quiet, limited, enclosed, low-pitched, low-frequency, small, low, tiny, cloudy, gloomy, loneliness, desert, slippery, icy, precarious, fluctuating, uncommunicative, poor, cognitive distortion)
tertiary divisions:
a) worried (dark, overthinking, running in circles, troubled, perturbed, disturbed, unsettled, stressed, noisy, confusion, brain fog, overcrowded, rowdy, heartbeat, pulse, fluctuating, uproar, din, unpleasant)
b) inadequate (unpleasant, inferior, troubled, perturbed, clatter, deficient, small, tiny, inferior, scarce, solitary, empty, void, loneliness, uncommunicative, poor, lacking, limited, cognitive distortion, frustration, anxiety, disorder)
c) inferior (poor, lacking, limited, closed, low, falling, deep, steep, comparison, cognitive distortion, frustration, impairment, barrier)
d) overwhelmed (crash, unpleasant, disorder, chaos, gas, open, huge, unreachable, void, overcome, inferior, powerless, brain fog, cognitive dysfunction, impairment, fatigue, tiredness, dizzy, oscillating, complex)
5) PRIMARY DIVISION: ANGRY (rage, dangerous, fury, terror, shaking, precarious, explosion, uncertain, unpredictable, unreliable, insecure, rough, scratchy, broken, irregular, bumpy, stony, agitated, vortex, windy, stormy, aggressive, brutal, rowdy, boisterous, bully, invasive, harmful, violent, stormy sea)
secondary divisions:
a) frustrated (defeat, block, barrier, storm, wasted, insecure, loneliness, deep, overthinking, short, wanting, needy, needful, in need of help, harmful, self-destroying, dark, concealed, curtained, foggy, veiled, obscure, hurtful, harmful, breakable, thin line, timing, running out of time, abstract, unreachable)
b) distant (unreachable, hard, complex, journey, quest, far, distant, huge, enormous, perilous, time, space, void, travel, desert, sandy, rocky, levels, loneliness, road, boundaries)
tertiary divisions :
a) infuriated(fury, cloudy, stormy, rowdy, noisy, overcrowded, filled up, uncomfortable, aggressive, potential, negative, harmful, poisonous, windy, tornado, changing, evolving)
b) annoyed (irritated, scratchy, discomfort, rough, crackling, angry, serious)
c) numb (blunt, unable, cold, stress, derealization, depersonalisation, disorder, chaos, low, silent, quiet, lonely)
d) withdrawn (inward, introverted, removed, abolished, quitter, retreat, backwards, loose, lose, lonely, silent, low-pitch, adagio music tempo, scared, frightened, inside)
6) PRIMARY DIVISION: DISGUSTED ()
secondary divisions:
a) disapproving (judgemental, unfavourable, overly, abundant, excessive, negative, critical, faulty, antisocial, lonely, object, personal, subjective)
b) repelled (fight off, drive back, backwards, sicken, repulsive, disgusted, revolted, away, distant, far, superiority, taken away)
tertiary divisions:
a) judgemental (unfavourable, overly, abundant, excessive, negative, critical, faulty, antisocial, lonely, object, personal, subjective)
b) embarassed (inferior, shy, lonely, judged, bullied, society, group, school, secret, awkward, self-consciuous, uneasy, uncomfortable, unsettled, anxiety, exposed, worried, weak, threatened)
c) horrified (extreme, shock, panic, emergency, petrified, stone, rock, hard, fast heart beat, running out of time, alarm, signal, loop, strong lights, flash, filled up, shaky, trembling)
d) hesitant (shy, bashful, timid, diffident, reserved, introverted, inwards, backwards, change of mind, indecisive, shaky, crumbly, falling, slow, breaking)
7) PRIMARY DIVISION: SAD ()
secondary divisions:
a) hurt (damage, falling apart, falling to pieces, pieces, crumbly, rocky, detrimental, weak, impairment, harm, pain, discomfort, soreness)
b) despair (extreme, panic, anxiety, unsettled, uneasy, absence, distress, anguish, lose hope, give up, quit)
tertiary divisions:
a) disappointed (let down, downhearted, cast down, defeated, lose, frustrated, saddened, weak, impaired)
b) embarassed (inferior, shy, lonely, judged, bullied, society, group, school, secret, awkward, self-consciuous, uneasy, uncomfortable, unsettled, anxiety, exposed, worried, weak, threatened)
c) grief (pain, suffering, hurt, lost, abandoned, empty, lonely, water, flood, closed, self-destructive, intense, extreme, sorrow, anguish, agony, trouble, danger, harm)
d) powerless (effortless, weak, thing, bending, breakable, on the edge, defeated, helpless, inferior, minor, small, ineffectual, inadequate, ineffective, lacking, fragile, feeble) .
After reflecting on the outcome of this exercise, I realised how happy emotions remind me of being free. Sad emotions make me feel closed in, trapped in my own personal limits and boundaries that I set my self, by feeling angry, confused, inferior to others.
STEP 4: STEP 4: REFLECT ON THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN COLOUR AND EMOTIONAL RESONANCE, AND CREATE A COLOUR PATTERN FOR EACH AREA OF EMOTIONS (Reviewing the relationship between colour, emotions and resonance).
After completing all the previous steps, I put together all the colour associated to secondary and tertiary categories, and associated them to the respective primary emotion category, creating some sort of colour palette related to that group of emotions (see screenshot above: wheel of emotions with related colours on the right side. Colours associated together to each emotion, on the left). By taking these colours as a starting point for further research, I used Adobe Colour Wheel tool to compare these colours with the different colour harmonies proposed by Adobe (eg: monochromatic, complementary, quadratic etc.). I then associated my chosen colours with these colour compositions, and tried to adjust each one of them to create a full colour palette of 5 colours for each category of emotions. Below are some screenshots of the process as well as a screenshot of the final result.
Trying out different options to create a split complimentary colour palette for "Angry" emotions.
Trying out different options to create a split complimentary colour palette for "Fearful" emotions.
Figma workspace - comparing original set of colours developed in STEP 3, with the final colour palettes generated on Adobe Colour Wheel, to check if the resonance between colours and emotions is still similar.
Details of colour palettes and emotions, comparing original colour palette to the ones generated with Adobe Colour Wheel tool.
Using Adobe Colour Wheel I created:
a Quadratic colour palette for "Happy" emotions
a split complimentary and a triad colour palette for "Surprised" emotions
a split complimentary colour palette for "Bad" category of emotions
a split complimentary colour palette for "Fearful" emotion category
a comlementary colour palette for "Angry"
a triad colour palette as well as compound colour palette for "Disgusted" emotions
Analogous, Monochromatic, and Shades Colour Palette for "Sad" emotions.
Screenshot of my Figma workspace, where I developed 1 or more different colour palettes for each category of emotions
Cognitive Bias - Reflection
Another workshop we took part in, during class, was to reflect on our own personal bias. Everyone is biased, and there are so many different types of bias affecting so many different aspects of our lives, from education, to social relationships
Below is a list of bias and psychological effects taken from the "Cognitive Bias" image, divided in categories.
a ) MEMORIES: WHAT SHOULD WE REMEMBER?
we edit and reinforce memories of an event after the even has happened. (EFFECTS: false memories, source confusion, spacing effect, misattribution).
we reduce elements and lists to their key points only (EFFECTS: memory inhibition, list-length effect, misinformation effect, levelling and sharpening)
b) TOO MUCH INFORMATION:
we are drawn to details that confirm our own existing beliefs (EFFECTS: confirmation bias, post-purchase rationalization, choice-supportive bias, expectation bias, ostrich effect, subjective validation).
c) NOT ENOUGH INFORMATION:
we tend to find patterns even when looking at sparse data (EFFECTS: confabulation, clustering illusion, illusion of validity, gambler's fallacy, illusory correlation, para-idolia)
we imagine things and people we're familiar with, as being better than others (EFFECTS: in-group bias, halo effect, cheerleader effect. positivity effect, not invented here, well-traveled road effect)
we simplify numbers to make them easier to think about (EFFECTS: mental accounting)
we think we know what others are thinking (EFFECTS: illusion of transparency, curse of knowledge, spotlight effect, illusion of external agency)
d) WE NEED TO ACT FASTER:
to act, we must be confident we can make an impact and feel what we do is important (EFFECTS: effort justification, defensive attribution, fundamental attribution error, illusory superiority, illusion of control, actor-observer bias, self-serving bias, optimism bias, egocentric bias, hard-easy effect, false consensus effect, third person effect, overconfidence effect)
To stay focused, we favour the immediate, relatable thing in front of us (EFFECT: identifiable victim effect, appeal to novelty, hyperbolic discounting)
To get things done, we tend to complete things we've invested time and energy in (EFFECT: Processing difficulty effect, pseudo-certainty effect, zero-risk bias, IKEA effect, loss aversion, generation effect, escalation of commitment, irrational escalation)
To avoid mistakes, we aim to preserve autonomy and group status, and avoid irreversible decisions (EFFECT: status quo bias, social comparison bias, reverse psychology, system justification)
We favour simple-looking options and complete information over complex, ambiguous options (EFFECT: less-is-better effect, law of triviality, bike-shedding effect, rhyme as reason effect, belief bias, information bias, ambiguity bias).
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