Senstory: A multisensory Book Experience

Abstract

As someone who has always enjoyed reading books and took inspiration from the experience of being at a library, I wondered if I could revamp the experience of reading a physical book in the age of digital media and experiencing stories through film. There is something poetic about being in a library where all your senses are engaged at once: Feeling the leather, the subtle sounds from the surroundings, the wooden shades and ambient lighting and the smell of old paper. It only seemed fair to create a multisensory experience as the next elevation of book-reading. This project which I have titled 'Natural Reflections' contains 9 excerpts written by me that explore the parallels between nature and human existence. Each of these excerpts is coupled with various sensory stimuli namely, sight, sound, smell and touch. This project is a book and a physical installation, wrapped up in one. I intend to take the power of words and further amplify them though engaging all the senses.

An open book with written text with sunset and night sky coloured texture strips.

Technical Details

The book will be an A4 sized novel with 9 unique excerpts written by me each with a rotation of different sensory elements namely visuals, audio, touch and smell.
The visual elements will be showcased via projection mapping combined with audio elements. Certain excerpts will have minimum or no words with spoken audio. Smell will be emulated via scratch and sniff paper or diffusion using air and touch will be showcased using different paper textures. For the most part, these elements shall be controlled by me.
The book will be set up on a pedestal in a dark room and shall be decorated in medieval style.
The aesthetic of the book is meant to feel modern and yet old with element seemings manufactured but with a scrapbook like feel.

An open book on a chair with an overhead projector projecting an image onto the written text

Research/Context

Through primary and secondary research, I have had the following findings about reading books and similar experiences that come with multi sensory story experiences: People prefer reading hard cover books over soft copies and most people who do read books seldom need additional material to help with immersion however, if additional experiences are offered, they are appreciated and seen as a different media than mere storytelling. A lot of my inspiration comes from the experience of wine tasting and dining at Michelin star restaurants where stories are told through food and fragrances. In cases like these, most dishes have to be presented in sync with the story being told too. The other constraints that I have come to realise is the ones that could arise with sensitivity to certain smells and flavours which I would have to take into account before incorporating the same into my project.
I also took inspiration from scratch and sniff books and stickers that are often geared towards children and the sense of wonder that those could invoke.
For the visual style, I chose to go with medieval writings and imagery since I was inspired by the idea of the book seeming like it belongs to a fairy tale.