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| Youn Hye-jun's interactive new media installation "AuxeticBreath" for 2021 TEI Conference / Courtesy of Youn Hye-jun |
Interaction designer redefines breathing as source of fear in pandemic era
By Park Han-sol
In normal times, breathing is recognized as a central force of life. But in the seemingly endless days of the COVID-19 pandemic, that same process of delivering air into and out of our lungs has transformed into a threatening source of anxiety and conflict. The possibility of very real danger lurks in every breath let out.
Interaction designer Youn Hye-jun redefines our perception of human contact and respiration in her artwork "AuxeticBreath," which will be showcased at the virtual art exhibition of this year's ACM International Conference on Tangible, Embedded and Embodied Interaction (TEI 2021).
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| Interaction designer Youn Hye-jun |
Due to the COVID-19, the TEI 2021 has fully transitioned online, organized by the University of Salzburg, Austria. The conference portion will take place from Feb. 14 to 19, while its virtual art exhibition will be open to the public from Feb. 16 to 27.
"AuxeticBreath" is an interactive new media installation that uses an emerging technology and a material quite unfamiliar to those outside the field of engineering ― soft robotics and auxetic structures.
Soft robotics, as the name indicates, generally involves the construction of robots with non-rigid, highly adaptable materials that can resemble the flexible movements of living organisms. Although the technology has been hailed in the field of computer science and engineering, it isn't something that artists usually think of to incorporate into their work.
The same goes for auxetic structures, characterized by their unique form-fitting deformation and curves ― when stretched, the material becomes thicker perpendicular to the applied force and narrower when compressed. Although the material hasn't been as widely commercialized, it can be used in the soles of footwear and other sports safety gear.
"I wanted to show other artists that they can utilize an emerging technology like soft robotics in this way and encourage them to explore new artistic approaches with techniques typically used only among engineers," Youn told The Korea Times.
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| Youn's interactive new media installation "AuxeticBreath" for 2021 TEI Conference / Courtesy of Youn Hye-jun |
Her work consists of 16 oval-shaped pieces that incorporate silicone-based soft robotics covered by a layer of geometrically-patterned auxetic structures. Together, they form the shape of human lungs and continue to inflate and deflate, visualizing the rhythmic respiratory rate.
"I started working on the project after the coronavirus outbreak. Soft robotics is a technology that requires air. And air means respiration. I wanted to capture in my work our changing perception of respiration and collective breaths before and after the pandemic," she explained.
Her work reflects our altered view toward personal contact through changes in its color and rate of inflation and deflation.
In a normal state, it emits a white light with a natural rate of breathing. However, when a viewer physically approaches the installed artwork, a motion sensor detects such movement, causing the pieces to change color to red or purple and switch to an unstable, rapid rhythm of breathing.
"Overall, it visually represents human emotions through the changes in the respiratory rate ― from relaxation to discomfort and horror at the sight of another individual coming up close."
Youn majored in psychology at New York University and earned her master's in digital media at Rhode Island School of Design (RISD). As an interaction designer, she explores the compelling intersection of human psyche-based storytelling and interactive technology.
She explained that the inspiration for many of her projects come from academic reading.
"I go through different research papers on psychology and once I figure out what I want to address in my work, I think about how I can materialize it through technology. That means it's time for participating in tech conferences like TEI 2021 and reading relevant papers."
Having no engineering background, she expressed her wish to study the field in the future while continuing to research and develop new technological ideas.
"Not only do I want to contribute to developing such technology, but I also am deeply interested in broadening its scope of usage to non-engineers by properly commercializing it."
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