Specularity—Superfluidity
Johnna Gem Yazgan
Through the echoing labyrinth of space and time, I look to the mirror and its representation in art and design to
understand the nature of specularity or the “mirror-ness” of the entangled web of subject-object relations. By looking
to the world of reflections, beyond its surface, we can seek out and discover a diverging path, an alternative to the
stabilized form of technology as we know it. By questioning our pre-existing relationship with and assumptions about
technology, we allow designers of the future to depart from designing for seamlessness to designing for Superfluidity.
Specularity
Based on the idea of specularity—the state of resembling a mirror— the mirror can be understood as a multi-dimensional form, metaphor, and artifact to investigate the next inexorable steps for the evolution of human-computer interaction/interface.
Inquiries
What are the cultural and societal implications of the reflection?; What is the relationship between the self and surface(s)?; What are the next inexorable steps in the form, function, and the design of the interface?; What is an equally viable alternative framework/methodology for the pursuit of seamlessness—interactions and experiences that are familiar, intuitive and frictionless—in design and communication?
—Superfluidity
Superfluidity, expanding on its conventional use in fluid dynamics, is a liquid characteristic of frictionless flow. The idea of superfluidity is a pivot around which this index is organized.
Conceiving of a New Form and Function For The Interface
The index references three Superfluid patterns, namely Flutter-finger, Zipper, and Sealskin, as forms to determine the ingredients for conceiving of a new, qualitatively different form and function of the interface-rethinking surface, material, object, interaction, and ultimately the form of our technology. The patterns are used as metaphor to describe the (1) state(s) of culture, media and digital design or design in the digital realm, (2) the form and effect of the interface, (3) design for the experience of both verbal and non-verbal communication.