Magic Wish

A magic space for children to create & cast their own spells, with the hope that they can learn from Positive Psychology embedded.

Quinny He

https://youtu.be/ITuAWD6XaIw

Description

We have many tools that help kids to learn: Scratch for kids to access programming, Variation Playground for kids to learn music, Cognimates for kids to understand AI concepts, and we even have a whole museum exploratorium for kids to explore scientific phenomena at their own pace. However, all these learning experiences focus on talents, which are non-moral (such as understanding physics). Seldom do people consider helping children develop strengths, which are moral and contribute to virtues (such as the ability to love and be loved). In the field of Positive Psychology, strengths development contributes to personal happiness in both childhood and adulthood. Can we design a learning tool specifically for kids to learn happiness? Located in a dark room, the project creates a magical space for children to create and cast their own magic spells. With the guidance of a magic book teaching children how to use our magic wand, children can use different gestures to control the floating spells projected on a giant transparent canvas and design a new spell for their own wish. For instance, a “heart” shape spell for the wish that “I want my parents to get back together”. This project draws inspiration from Positive Art Therapy, the art therapy for positive psychology interventions, provides our young audience with a magical space to learn optimism, overcome grief, and regain hope.

IMA/IMB Shanghai
INTM-SHU.401.2
Capstone Studio (Shanghai)
Education

MediaMoney

MediaMoney provides simple analytics for any public Twitter account. With this handy tool, you can even estimate how much advertising money your favorite Twitter accounts can make with each tweet.

Hank D Wu

https://youtu.be/qo2QN_LnkZU

Description

The chief purpose of MediaMoney ties in directly with a relatively new phenomenon: the monetization of social media. Despite rapid changes in the social media landscape, such monetization has remained rather opaque to content consumers. While many consumers now understand that social media can be a real business that drives very real profits, there remains quite a bit of misinformation regarding the quantity of such payments. Some consumers tend to underestimate the revenue generated by social media influencers (likely because few formal transactions ever take place directly between the consumer and the influencer). However, others also validly overestimate revenue, especially after viewing content depicting the lavish lifestyles of such influencers. The reality is much more nuanced. Consuming “free” media on platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, and Twitter is a large part of an important value creation process. Thus, the primary objective of this project is to cut through the opaqueness and shed light on what truly happens.

IMA/IMB Shanghai
INTM-SHU.401.2
Capstone Studio (Shanghai)
Education

Subjective Mapping: (Re)visit NYUSH and its memories

A digital subjective map of the 8th floor IMA space at the NYUSH Pudong campus, where users leave and share their memories attached to any location.

Zheng Zhang

https://youtu.be/plVQvrSiIhQ

Description

Distinct from traditional mapping/cartography which intends to represent a territory as close to reality as possible, subjective mapping aims at producing a map using one’s own physical sense, emotion and memories that are not necessarily objective. Subjective mapping can be understood as the cognitive process that one reproduces his/her “story of experiences” at a specific location through making a map of the place (Nomadways). In creating such a map, one “stores and expresses his/her emotions into minimalistic shapes”.

The physical territory of the IMA spaces, added with personal annotations, is a community-created subjective map. The idea of this project is born from the context that our school is moving to a new campus in the Shanghai Qiantan area, and the current building will no longer be accessible by the NYU Shanghai community.

This project is aimed at creating a digital heritage of the current campus with students’ memory attachments, so that we can go back and revisit our alma mater when we are not able to do so physically in the future. Given the COVID-19 situation, the goal of this project can be extended to provide a community space for students, fellows and faculties to bond with each other while the campus is inaccessible. The project utilizes 1) Mozilla Hubs as the frontend and backend to host both the virtual space of the Pudong campus as well as personal memory pins in various forms, and 2) Spoke by Mozilla to create the 3D model of the campus itself. Given time constraints, this project focuses on objectively mapping the 8th floor of the Pudong campus and intends to create a subjective map of spaces related to IMA. The project will allow users to immerse themselves in the building, interact with other online users, and to drop down “pins of memory” at any location.

In a broader sense, this project will enable the current and future NYU Shanghai community to have an accessible space to document their individual attachments about the Pudong campus. Furthermore, it can also be a place for people to share their attachments, and thus enhance connections within the community.

IMA/IMB Shanghai
INTM-SHU.401.2
Capstone Studio (Shanghai)
VR\\AR,Tool\\Service

FAN-SEE: A collaborative website for fans

Fan-see is a crowdsourced video project which recreates a fans' version of the Fancy music video to show the creativity and engagement of K-pop fans.

Yiqi Chang

https://youtu.be/lcLzSzxvZCQ

Description

Fans can select any frame from the Fancy music video and redraw it in their ways. Then, fans are asked to upload their drawings to the website. All the frames will be pieced together to recreate a fans’ version of the music video. Fan-see’s goal is to present the K-pop fandom as a group of active audiences. K-pop fans engage with the K-pop industry and act as participatory consumers. They not only consume music but also create their artworks ranging from drawings to videos. Borrowing the frame-by-frame music video style from the Johnny Cash project that was created in memory of the American musician Johnny Cash, Fan-see tries to showcase transnational K-pop fans’ involvement in community and creativity.

IMA/IMB Shanghai
INTM-SHU.401.2
Capstone Studio (Shanghai)
Culture

A Reflection on Lookism

An interactive face fortune telling/plastic surgery consultation that reflects on lookism and gwansang in South Korea.

Jessica Chon

https://youtu.be/cHf-VaSzmQ4

Description

Inspired by the cultural phenomena of lookism and gwansang, A Reflection on Lookism serves as a medium for users to question the significance of appearance in their daily lives. Lookism is appearance-based discrimination, while gwansang is Korean face fortune telling. Both are significant cultural aspects of South Korea, and I was particularly moved by the connection between the two. People feel the need to succeed and believe that they need to meet specific beauty standards to do so. As they undergo cosmetic procedures to improve their appearance and seek reassurance that their looks will be accepted by society, face fortune tellers cannot reaffirm this fortune, as their natural faces have been altered. I convey this irony through my consultation that is hosted on a simulated plastic surgery clinic website I created. The consultation is held virtually in a tent that is meant to mimic a fortune telling stall in South Korea, but with more “high-end” elements to give the professional feel of a clinic consultation.

The reason I combine both a clinic and stall is because when I enter fortune telling tents in Korea, there is a mixed feeling of hesitation and excitement because fortune telling, I believe, is mysterious in itself. As for the hesitation, trying to experience something that is so “powerful” and mystifying in such an unexpected tent seems strange. I want users to feel this emotion to capture the fortune telling experience. On the other hand, I also wanted to recreate the intimidation I feel when entering medical clinics. At times, I find going to a doctor intimidating. Everything is pristine and you’re suddenly hyper-aware of your medical knowledge and lifestyle habits. I want users to also feel this type of uncertainty that I feel when I go to medical clinics.

IMA/IMB Shanghai
INTM-SHU.401.2
Capstone Studio (Shanghai)
Culture,Narrative/Storytelling

Visual Emotions: A Multi-sensory Documentary Photography Series

It is an audiovisual installation that creates a sonic viewing experience for digital photography.

Zeping Fei

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jp_sksC-dq8

Description

Visual Emotions: A Multi-sensory Documentary Photography Series is an audiovisual installation that creates a sonic viewing experience for digital photography. Photographic contents were shot on one of the oldest and most vibrant morning markets in Harbin and audio contents were recorded separately during each shooting process. Field recordings are analyzed as audio spectra in Touchdesigner that affect positions, colors, brightness, and sizes of pixels in rendered photos. In my photography world, each shutter press is triggered by an emotional resonance between the self and the environment, and the use of audio data translates these personal emotions that arise from each situation and are unique to each photograph. By engaging both visual and auditory sensations from the audience, this project proposes an alternative to displaying and viewing photographic works and. This work aims for arousal in people’s photography viewing experience and opens up more space for imagination and interpretation of visual and audio information. It intends to reflect on how economic instability caused by COVID-19 is gradually affecting common people’s living conditions. This series translates the artist’s emotional resonance with the pandemic, speaks for the calmness within ordinary as well as the longing for hope within helplessness during the toughest time in human history.

IMA/IMB Shanghai
INTM-SHU.401.2
Capstone Studio (Shanghai)
Sound,Art

Our Time Compared and Visualized: Optimistically Looking Forward

A series of clay dioramas that show human life in three different time periods: the industrial revolution, the modern day and in a post-labor utopian future.

Patricia Wier

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJJ9XcH_3So

Description

The chief purpose of my project is to present my idea of a utopian future in which robots do all work. It explores what could drive humans without work. Also, it explores what humans do with their time in three different time periods: the industrial revolution, the modern-day, and in this utopian future. The time periods are presented to help the audience better understand the stark differences between them and the potential for the future. Many dramatic things were happening in regards to labor during the industrial revolution, including machines replacing humans to some degree. My utopian idea is addressing the common perception that machinery taking over jobs is a bad thing and it challenges pessimistic views of the future.

I chose the diorama form because these kinds of ideas are, in my experience, usually presented in written form. Presenting this project in diorama form speaks to an audience in a different way. A diorama is a more concrete, immersive, and clear presentation of my idea. Although similar ideas to mine exist, my idea is in a new form and puts certain issues such as humans’ new purpose at the forefront. The diorama form was cemented in museums soon after the industrial revolution so that adds to my longing to include that time period. I would like people to have a more optimistic view of the future and understand several ways in which machines can continue to improve our lives.

IMA/IMB Shanghai
INTM-SHU.401.2
Capstone Studio (Shanghai)
Art