What if tea culture becomes a way for people in future cities to engage in wellbeing practices by fostering a safe space for people to improve their wellbeing and become more aware of their environment through the way of tea?
This project aims to design an artefact from a speculative scenario and conceptualise how the future of tea and wellbeing will exist in a hypothetical world. Based on my previous work ‘the future of tea and wellbeing - a speculative scenario’, over four weeks, I will conceive, develop, and deliver an artefact that belongs in this future world that does not yet exist.
Concept design & ideation phase
During the concept and ideation phase, I imaginatively situated myself within my future of tea and wellbeing scenario and drew on the insights gathered from my previous work to identify possible artefacts that could exist in this future. I drew inspiration from several speculative and transition design case studies to inform my work during this process. View my Miro board here to get a closer look.
The three ideas I was most drawn to were to create a speculative tea brand, a tea ceremony ceramics set or an urban tea ceremony hub. I made mood boards for each of these ideas to detail what an artefact may look like and which aspects were important to include in the design process.
Tea Ceremony Hub Mood Board
For the tea ceremony hub mood board I researched three unique case studies. The case study I previously analysed, called 'Taste in Culture' by Lydia Fan Mo, recrafts contemporary tea architecture and investigates how to revive the tea tradition by proposing an urban tea space in Auckland CBD, providing an inner sanctuary for urban dwellers.
Having spoken to Lydia, she welcomed me to expand on her work and draw inspiration from it. I enjoy Lydia's work's potential for puriversal design by integrating different cultures of Auckland's demographic into the hub, such as Maori, Pacifica, Asian and Kiwi. This Auckland based pluriversal aspect links to my conversation with Julia Ioane and how we must incorporate indigenous psychological approaches to wellbeing for future urban design—specifically including Maori and Pacific perspectives in the future of Auckland community hubs.
(Image by Lydia Mo Fan)
Drawing from my conversation with Alessandro Premier, the Future Cities Research Hub co-chair, I analysed a case study from one of his architecture students, Thomas Loots. The case study reimagines communities in high-density areas and proposes the creation of urban green villages. Fostering an optimistic view of the future, Loots imagines self-sufficient communities without the support of external institutions through incorporating biophilic urban planning and regenerative urban farming. Overall, the concept fits into an idealistic green vision of future cities that closely ties in with my biophilia research and its benefits for human urban wellbeing. Drawing inspiration from this case study, I could create an artefact of an urban tea and wellbeing centre situated within the green village.
(Images by Thomas Loots)
Lastly, I explored a case study of a glow in the dark tea room at Sanrio Puroland, which challenges the conventional image of a tea ceremony and reimagines the future of the tradition using light technology. The art collective 'TEA-ROOM' designed a glow in the dark tea room in collaboration with the brand Sanrio for their Halloween event. The tea room combines the essence of a traditional tea room with fluorescent light technology. For example, the tea master of The TEA-ROOM, Souryou Matsumura, welcomes you with a cup of tea prepared in a fluorescent tea set. Alongside this, the tea is served with glowing Japanese traditional confectionery. What I enjoy about this case study is its playfulness. Interacting with traditional objects through an unfamiliar aesthetic prompts our imagination for what the future of tea ceremonies could be like.
At the heart of the glow in the dark tea room lies the philosophy of challenging the norm of the tradition, just as Sen-No-Rikyu, the founder of the current form of Japanese tea ceremony, did 400 years ago. Additionally, the futuristic aesthetic of the design is reminiscent of cyberpunk cities, similar to the urban environment I describe in my speculative scenario. Therefore, this case study would be perfect for informing a tea ceremony design in a cyberpunk setting.
(Photographs by Lawrence Randall)
Branding Mood Board
The mood board for a speculative tea brand artefact is mainly based on the speculative design 'Plasticful Foods' case study by Waste 2 Worth. Having analysed this in my previous blogs, I enjoyed how Plastic Fuel Foods creates an alternative reality based on current projections about the future of plastic pollution in our food systems. The branding for this campaign subverts foods we know and love and portrays them as plastic edibles marketed in bright and unnatural colours. Each item further provokes the viewer through bylines such as 'Organic and recycled' or 'Refreshing PET flavour'. I could take a similar approach to create a speculative tea brand that offers social commentary on life in future urban cities. For example, a brand which comments on how the increasing integration of technology into our everyday lives in the future may threaten our humanity.
(Images by Waste2Worth)
Additionally to Plasticful Foods, I explored tea branding aesthetic precedents sourced via Behance. I studied tea branding that played with bright colours in a soft drink style can; this type of packaging could suggest that tea wellbeing packages and drinks could become a commodity to be accessed via vending machines. Further, I explored Buddhist inspired branding, which contrasts with earlier case studies due to its lack of colour and simplistic aesthetics. Lastly, I explored the idea of a tea ceremony box kit that enables people to partake in tea ceremonies from their own homes. The concept of a box kit is appealing as I would be able to design the branding and a range of artefacts included within the box kit, allowing me to hone my graphic and product design skills.
Teaware Mood Board
The teaware mood board connects to my research regarding Japanese tea ceremonies, such as my conversation with Ian Fookes, and my interest in ceramics. A case study that piqued my interest was the 'Zen Garden Tea Set' by Kinda Kao. This small and portable set is inspired by the cultural heritage of a Japanese Zen garden to create beautiful and intentional teaware. It is designed to create an elegant and meditative tea-drinking experience and educate users on the culture of the Zen garden. Kao's collection transforms the elements of a Zen garden into the simplicity of teaware; an example of this is the design choice of a minimalist colour palette with just black and white representing the "blank-leaving" spirit of the Zen garden. An aspect I enjoy about this set is that together, the whole collection becomes a miniature landscape of the Japanese Zen garden; From the wave-like patterns which resemble a quiet water surface to the texture vortex which symbolises water flowing around mountains represented by cone-shaped 'sandpiles'. In summary, the Zen Garden Tea Set takes teaware beyond just a form of utensils.
(Images by Kinda Kao)
Another case study I took inspiration from is the exhibition 'Playful Self' by Alex Rothera, which I have previously analysed here. In the show, visitors can interact with a tea set which, when touched, instantly receives their personal body data and reflects it immediately in different ways. Rothera states that this exhibition is based on the assumption that in the future, we can assume that all biometrics of our body will be available instantly or continuously. Most objects around us will listen to our "body data" and react accordingly. For example, when a person touches the tea set, the sugar pulsates up and down in its dish to the cadence of the users breathing. A tea bag will bounce in the cup to the beat of your heart. The teapot will whistle in a pitch that coincides with your heart rate. And the record player will even sing Frank Sinatra's "Under My Skin" at a speed reflective of how much you're currently sweating. I am drawn to this case study as it encourages visitors to experience a biometric-driven future. Through creating visualisations of biometric data, people might become more aware of the objects around them and consider if those objects could or should be listening.
(Photographs via Alex Rothera)
Initial chosen concept and rationale
Initially, I wish to pursue combining a tea brand with a tea ceremony set for my final concept. My original intent was to create a design that integrates the social commentary branding aspect of the speculative design seen in 'Plastifcul Foods' and merge this with the interactive biometric experience that 'Playful Self' offers. This design would be a future tea brand that sells artefacts such as a 'Mindful Tea' kit consisting of loose leaf tea with different health benefits, biometric teaware with integrated biometric sensors and a mindfulness tea ceremony manual.
The kit would measure biometric data to create a meditative tea drinking experience using biometric monitors on the tea utensils. A representation of the user's biometric data could be visualised via the teaware, for example, heart rate-based vibrations causing tea within a cup to ripple. The rationale for this design is that users would become more aware of their physical presence as represented in their environment through visualising their biometrics, thus enabling them to become more in touch with their mind and body. To complement this, the brand could promote mindfulness techniques for users to practice while drinking tea to improve their mental wellbeing.
To create this artefact within the tight time frame, I made a tasks sheet to track my progress across the different areas needed in the design, such as branding, mocking up, and the process and reflection. To structure and track my tasks, I used a template from Miro and adapted it to my needs by adding colour coded task stickies.
To begin my process, I researched branding aesthetics and how they could relate to my speculative mindfulness tea brand. My research included sourcing mockup templates, packaging inspiration, exploring abstract and realistic depictions of nature, tea and mental wellbeing. Throughout this research, I was inspired by the visual aesthetics of Auras and how they link to wellbeing informed by Hinduism and Tantric Buddhism.
An aura is the unseen spiritual energy field that surrounds all living things. One's aura consists of seven auric layers representing physical, emotional, mental, astral body, etheric, celestial, and casual aura planes. Aura colours represent a Chakra which refers to energy points in your body. They are thought to be spinning disks of energy that should stay "open" and aligned, as they correspond to bundles of nerves, major organs, and areas of our energetic body that affect our emotional and physical wellbeing. Initially, I wished to only take aesthetic inspiration from the colour pattern of aura visualisations, however, as I researched how Auras are interconnected with wellbeing and used mindfulness practices, I decided to embrace the overall concept to inform my design.
Final chosen concept and rationale
Upon presenting my work in progress and gaining feedback from my lecturer Nick we pivoted my idea to be an augmented mindfulness experience rather than creating a mindfulness tea kit brand. Re-evaluating my direction allowed me to stay true to my speculative design framework. As guided by my framework, the mindfulness tea kit brand lent itself more to transition design. My original concept didn't allow for the pluriversal and personalised human experience I wished to design.
My final concept is to design an artefact which is an augmented tea room with an artificial intelligence tea master that creates an immersive tea ceremony experience that improves users' wellbeing. The room is a safe environment that measures the user's biometric data and physical markers of wellbeing. It incorporates this into the tea ceremony through personalised tea blends based on the user's needs. For example, the tea blends can have calming properties for a person who is stressed or anxious. Visualisations of the user's biometric data and manual inputs will be shown on digital displays and augmented reality projections in the space around them. The AI tea master will guide users through a mindfulness-based tea ceremony that assesses the users' mental wellbeing and helps reduce stressors through guided mindfulness practices. The tea room design could be situated in future public spaces allowing many people to access the mental health services provided by the design. Additionally, personalised tea rooms could be commissioned for private places.
The rationale for the tea ceremony design is informed by my speculative scenario and research insights. My earlier research for part one of this assignment indicated that there will be a decline in mental wellbeing as future societies become more urbanised. Therefore, as indicated in my speculative scenario, tea culture can become a way for people negatively affected by urban living to uplift their mental wellbeing and potentially reconnect with their human side in a future increasingly integrated with technology. I chose to base my design around a tea ceremony because the ceremony environment offers a calm and reflective space for people to reconnect with themselves and explore how their humanness allows them to become more aware of their environment. The advantages of having an artificial intellegence tea master guide the ceremony and meditation experience are that a technology-based system will measure and process user biometric data in real-time to create a highly accurate personalised experience. Additionally, an AI system means that users will be able to access the tea ceremony benefits at any time. All of these design decisions will allow for a seamless, immersive experience in which users can step away from the stresses of daily life to rechange and develop rituals that nourish the mind and soul.
At this stage of the process, I had not yet decided on a name for the design; however, I brainstormed several options, which you can view below. My brainstorm included one-word names, tea puns, names that referenced wellbeing, as well as Japanese names and their meaning.
Tea and Traditional Japanese Culture
Before I began creating my final concept, I had the pleasure of being invited to attend a lecture by Ian Fookes which discussed the role that traditional culture plays in the construction and maintenance of Japanese national identity. Throughout the lecture Ian described the history of tea ceremonies as a holistic artform through which one can practice all aspects of Japanese culture. Below I will summarise my learnings from the lecture alongside supporting research from my own findings.
Chanoyu, the way of tea, is a form of nation work. Today tea practice is a leisure activity like sports but has no spectators. It is a hobby, but encased in a rigid hierarchical organisation. It is an art but also a routine. It exists deliberately apart from everyday life, however it is a synthesis of everything that is Japanese. Many scholars of tea describe it as being part of the national identity of Japan and an everyday occurrence that reveals Japanese identity. For example, scholar Kristin Surk examines how everyday practices are intertwined with nationalst discourses to form a complex set of interrelated practices that constitute nation work. Nation work connects contemporary everyday practices with historical and political discourses of the nation. The illustrated guide to Japan, culture and tradition (2002) presents different theories of traditional Japanese aspects that make up the heart of Japan which include shinto shrines, buddhist temples, gardens, zen, tea ceremony, haiku and tanka, flower arranging and calligraphy. All of these aspects are codified through the way of tea as being uniquely and essentially Japanese. They articulate traditional Japanese culture and form a network of meaning related to all aspects of daily life within the history and geography of Japan, with each element symbolising something of a perceived Japanese essence.
Tea came to Japan from China during the Tang Dynasty (618-907) through Buddhist exchanges and trade. Tea masters arranged tasting parties and etiquette was emphasised in order to focus on the tea tasting. Buddhist monks also used tea to keep awake. The Shingong monk Kukai (Kobo Daishi) is famous for introducing Buddhism to Japan as well as tea. Through Kukai, the Chinese understanding of the world of tea and the consequent attitudes that flowed from it appear to have made their way to Japan. (Shingong monk Kukai (Kobo Daishi) via Tricycle)
Tea enabled the Japanese a similar means of escaping from the depravity of the world, the corruption of public affairs and the anxieties of life, and soar up to an ideal world of freedom, as it did for Chinese poets and scholars. To this day, tea still plays a role of taking people out of everyday life to be free of the worries of the world. During the Kamakura period (1192 - 1333) zen Buddhism became a guiding force of the government. Moyan Eisei, founder of the Rinzai Sect of Zen Buddhism, bought tea seeds from China and accentuated the medicinal aspects of tea drinking, offering tea publically as a form of medicine in 1281 to combat physical and mental illnesses. The later Muromachi period (1336-1573) celebrated an elaborate sense of beauty and the Ashikaga Shoguns used tea as entertainment and a way of displaying their power. Tea was prepared for aristocrats and military elites by attendants in a closed space and then served and tea gatherings focused on showing off rare gods.
However, during this period a scholar Murata Shuko who was favoured by the Ashikaga Shogunate defied tea rituals as elaborate displays of power. Through his study of Buddhism, Murata Shuko founded ‘Wabi-cha’ based on the beauty of rustic simplicity. As his ideas grew in popularity political leaders began making tea themselves, and making tea together to escape the social hierarchy of the time. In the tea room everyone was equal.
(Sen-no-Rikoyu Via GettyImages)
Stemming from this practice Takeno Joo (1500-1555), the teacher of Sen-no-Rikoyu, developed an aesthetic of Wabi Tea based on Renga poetry. Rikoyu went on to codify tea practice into a unified and strictly regulated ceremony and also extended Joo’s Wabi aesthetic into Wabi-sabi which is to appreciate the irregularity and aged patina over time such as that seen on tea utensils. Wabi-sabi encapsulates the appreciation of the natural and simple, together with a feeling of melancholy at the transience of beauty. Based on Rikoyu’s teachings, tea gatherings became a form of political diplomacy and emphasizes that the moment of making and drinking tea in a ceremony will never happen again in the same way, therefore it is important to cherish that moment when making tea. This position of tea sowed the seeds for its role in postwar Japan as a cornerstone of traditional culture and aesthetics.
The Meiji and Taisho periods saw massive changes in Japanese society. Chanoyu emerged as a foundation of the traditional Japanese culture existing in opposition to morder westernised culture. Later, during the post rebuilding of Japan the mission of tea practitioners was to spread peace and harmony through Chanoyu and tea ceremonies took on a new set of meanings. Tea ceremony became a place where Japanese values and identity could be passed on and history could be preserved. Tea practice became dominated by older women to maintain its role in informal display and protect Japanese identity.
(Modern Tea Ceremony Via GettyImages)
Today, the networks and practice of tea provide a path on which one creates an identity as a chajin or tea person. This identity has cultural authority in Japan and serves as a course of empowerment, especially for older women. Tea is also popular with young foreigners as it provides a way to be accepted and have a place in Japan. Additionally, it has become a pathway toward thinking about sustainability and changing our attitude to consumption, and awareness of nature through the way of tea.
This research allows me to step forward in the development of my artefact with a more informed view of the importance and history of tea culture in Japan. The findings of these explorations will allow me to develop major design aspects with respect to the traditional cultural nuance around Chanoyu.
Development of Major Design Aspects
This section will explore the development of major design decisions which bring my concept to life.
Design Principles
The tea ceremony and meditative experience will be guided by the principles of Zen Buddhism to design a meaningful experience and pay homage to the roots of Japanese tea culture. Through research, I have identified principles within Japanese tea culture which I wish to play a key role in the conceptualisation of my design.
Two fundamental principles of Japanese Zen Buddhism is that the separation between self and others is just an illusion that disappears when we are awakened, and everything in the universe is connected. As users experience the tea ceremony, I wish all design elements to emphasise that the self is not separate from the environment to foster a deeper appreciation and awareness of users' surroundings within and outside the tea room. My aim for the tea ceremony experience is to create an original design that embraces the subtleties and imperfections of the user to foster a meaningful experience.
(Japanese Buddhist Temple via Unsplash)
The principle of constant change will be encapsulated in the design experience to remind users that their thoughts, pains, sufferings are impermanent and things can change for the better. Additionally, the idea that painful things may happen should remind users to accept that good times can come to an end, as that is the nature of change, therefore they should take time to practice being present and mindful to experience each moment fully. Overall, I hope to create a meditative environment through my design in which users can share these principles of Japanese Zen Buddhism and come out of the tea room feeling a sense of Zen.
At this stage in the process, I decided on the name for my design - Satori. In the Zen Buddhist tradition, Satori is used to reference experiencing and realising one's true nature. It describes a state of awakening, understanding or enlightenment. I chose this name as it is a term from Japanese Buddhism and is at the core of Zen thinking (Takao, H. 2001). I believe Satori reflects the essence of what I wish to achieve with my mindful tea ceremony concept and encompasses how I wish users to feel after their mindful ceremony experience. Satori will be the name for both the tea ceremony master (Japanese characters for Satori)
and the experience as a whole.
Satori Tea Master Specifications
A vital aspect of the tea ceremony experience will be the role of the artificial tea master, who also takes on the form of a Zen mindfulness guide. For my concept, I envisage the tea master to be all-encompassing in the tea room. Rather than being a specific figure, the tea master will take on the form of a calming voice using a surround sound speaker system and environmental elements such as sensory cues and digital displays to 'speak' to the user. This multisensory experience will add to the immersive nature of the tea ceremony and transport the user into a world removed from their everyday lives.
For inspiration, I looked to the popular guided meditation app 'Headspace' designed by Andy Puddicombe to spread his learnings from his time as a Buddhist monk. The app aims to teach meditation and mindfulness to as many people as possible via guided meditations, animations, articles and videos in an easy and accessible way. In the app, users can select themes such as 'anxiety and 'regret' and access guided meditation sessions based on these themes. The app also allows users to keep track of their meditation sessions.
(Headspace image via Unsplash)
In my own design, I will take a similar approach to Headspace when developing my concept for the tea ceremony guide.
Tea Blend Specifications
A central element of the Satori experience is the tea used in the tea ceremony. This section will explore the health benefits tea offers and how they can be leveraged to complement the immersive ceremony.
Tea has been used in traditional and holistic medicine for centuries; Eastern medicine, in particular, has prized various teas for their natural healing abilities. Practitioners of holistic medicine such as Dr. Andrew Weil and Dr. Leigh Erin Connealy state that drinking tea regularly can help people live a balanced and healthy lifestyle. Although tea is not a magic healing potion, several studies have linked tea to preventative and even curative benefits. Research shows that the health benefits of teas may be related to the high content of bioactive ingredients such as polyphenols. Polyphenols have been reported to possess antioxidant, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory activities; modulate detoxification enzymes; stimulate immune function and decrease platelet aggregation (Lampe 2003; Frankel and Finley 2008). Therefore, through hosting a mindful tea ceremony, Satori can provide mental-emotional as well as natural healing benefits for users.
Below is a Miro board where I have explored several tea blends and their health benefits.
Satori will help users gain the optimal health benefits from drinking tea through an artificial intelligence system. Based on the user's mental and physical needs, Satori will combine various teas in real-time to create a unique blend for the ceremony. This design feature will create user ease as people won't worry and spend time choosing a tea blend that is right for them. For example, if a person is stressed and struggles with a busy mind, Satori can create a custom blend mixing chamomile, lemon balm and peppermint tea. Chamomile and lemon balm tea have been shown to relieve anxiety, while Peppermint Tea has relaxing effects, helping to soothe the body and calm the mind.
Immersive environment
My intention for Satori's tea room is to create an enveloping environment that can foster immersive experiences for people to find safety and tranquility in, away from their everyday lives. To achieve this I researched several interactive digital installations below to take inspiration from.
(Video via Kuflex)
Quantum Trampoline is a large-scale interactive cosmic trampoline made for the Space exploration zone in the Enchanted Kingdom Park, Philippines. Made in collaboration with technical partner The Future Park, the Quantum Trampoline is made of a large-scale interactive video projection that enables people to create temporary artworks using their whole body. The installation has several visual themes for people to interact with, such as fire, light streaks, meteor showers, aurora or streams of fluid. An aspect I enjoy about the Quantum Trampoline installation is its ability to create a full body immersive experience that transports people into a different world to have fun and temporarily let go of their worries. I wish to use a similar digital projection technique to create an immersive full-body experience for the user in my own design.
(Video via Behance)
Unhooked is an installation created by students at the Barcelona School of Design and Engineering. The installation provides a relaxing space for people to experience smartphone detoxification. When users enter the space, they are met with a plinth that prompts them to place their phone down using LED lights and written cues. Proximity sensors recognise once the phone is set down, which prompts the lighting in the room to change. The user then can recline on a comfortable chair phone-free to enjoy some calming music and take in the ambient lighting. An aspect I enjoy about the Unhooked installation is the utilisation of a relaxing soundscape to help users unwind. For my own design, I would like to create an ambient soundscape for the tea room to appeal to all of the user's senses to create a tranquil space.
(Video via Rare Volume)
SK-II Future X Smart Stores is an interactive portrait experience designed by Rare Volume for the skincare company SK-II's innovative retail, pop-up, and event network. The interactive portrait experience generates real-time responses to visitors' emotions using high-resolution camera feeds. The visuals are created by coding a vibrant particle system, motion tracking and expression analysis algorithms that reflect people's emotions by interpreting their facial expressions. As the person's facial expression changes, the visual and sonic palettes respond in real-time. I really enjoy how the SK-II Future X Smart Stores installation creates a vibrant and playful experience, leaving room for people to explore how different facial expressions influence visualisation. In my design, I wish to take elements of the facial recognition software and vibrant visualisations that this project uses to craft unique user experiences.
(Photographs via Behance)
Artist Liz West explored human visual perception and how colour affects our emotions and our bodies in her 2016 'Our Colour' installation for Bristol Biennial British. This immersive light installation transformed an architectural space using vibrant colours to create an embodied experience by refracting light through coloured theatre gels. Using light as a sculptural material, the artist explores the physical, emotional and psychological effects of colour within a space. In this artwork, I am drawn to how the artist plays with colours to create a spectrum which immerses the user as if they are stepping inside a rainbow. The way in which West connects colours with their psychological impacts on our mood is reminiscent of Auras and the role they play in the practice of Hinduism and Tantric Buddhism. In my design, I will explore how I can use colour to reflect the emotional state of the user during their tea ceremony experience.
Biometric Specifications
A key element of Satori is the use of biometric technology to create a personalised experience. Biometric data is the measurement and statistical analysis of people's unique physical, emotional and behavioural characteristics. These characteristics can be measured via capacitive coupling with the human body by using the electricity naturally surging through our bodies to transfer electronic signals. For example, in the Playful Self installation, the prototype objects all have a piece of metal to receive electric currents.
Biometrics can also assess stress levels and other physiological metrics by using facial expression analysis data which can track if a person is frustrated, happy, confused and so on. The SK-II Future X Smart Stores installation uses this tracking technology coupled with visual displays that respond to the onlooker's emotional state. My Satori room design will feature integrated biometric sensors such as facial expression recognition and tone of voice analysers. This will enable Satori to read users emotional states and create a targeted mindful ceremony catered to the user's needs.
(Images via Rare Volume)
Using these biometric sensors, Satori will be able to detect if the user is showing signs of anxiety through their expression and verbal responses to Satori's questions through tone of voice analysis. Satori can then host a tea ceremony that focuses on calming, such as through deep breathing exercises. Additionally, biometric technology such as facial recognition enables Satori to create user profiles and log previous tea ceremony data. This allows users to track their mindful tea ceremony sessions and will enable Satori to build a personal profile of users characteristics. For example, through user logs, Satori can detect a person who is often displaying anxiety symptoms and refer them to a psychologist for professional treatment.
Artefact Visualisation Process
The assignment specifications for the final artefact was to create one hero shot visualisation the artefact in action, and two descriptive shots which outline the major design elements of the artefact. My original intent for these visualisation was to create an animation of Satori hosting a mindful tea session accompanies by a sound scape. However, at this stage of the assignment I experienced heavy creative burnout and general exhaustion from the semester. Therefore, I opted to create still visualisations instead. Below are the quick sketch plans I used to ideate my visualisations.
An aspect I wished to incorporate into my visualisations was what the steps of the ceremony would be like and what the user would be doing. Therefore, I designed a short at home tea ceremony based with each step based on Buddhist principles found in traditional Japanese ceremonies. I trialled this ceremony several times myself to make sure each step appropriately corresponded with the values I wished them to encapsulate.
Final Artefact
Satori is an artificial intelligence tea master who guides users through a mindfulness experience. The ceremony takes place in an oval LED screen room with a tea set placed at it's centre. When users step into the tea room, Satori will analyse the person's wellbeing by using biometric measures such as emotion recognition sensors and ask questions over a speaker system about how the person is feeling. Based on the user’s physical and verbal responses, Satori will then use artificial intelligence to create a custom tea blend for the ceremony which targets the user's needs. Informed by the users biometric data the LED screen and room will also turn on coloured ambient lighting to create a visual representation of the user's Aura.
Throughout the tea ceremony, Satori guides users through mindfulness meditation based on their mental emotional state. The meditation will prompt users to reflect on their emotions and to become more in tune with themselves and the environment. Satori will also use facial recognition to keep track of individuals' ceremony sessions in order to build a more personal experience over time. Users can also opt to integrate their sessions with Satori into a therapy plan in collaboration with professional therapy.
My final visualisation was created using Midjourney, an AI powered tool which helps translate your imagination to artwork via creative writing prompts.
Reflection on final artefact
Reflecting on my final artefact, the creation of Satori as a tea ceremony experience was highly ambitious. My favourite aspect of this design is seeing how my research informed the final outcome to create a comprehensive concept for a unique user experience in the future. I am especially proud of all of the research that went into creating this artefact which I believe is one of the strong points of my design. In my opinion, the final outcome of my augmented tea ceremony is an original concept which successfully integrates traditional aspects of Japanese tea culture and Buddhist principles whilst bringing the ceremony into a modern form.
Although this design was challenging, I believe that for my final artefact I could have created more impactful visualisations. In particular for the hero image I had planned to create an animation which simulated the tea ceremony in session for a future user. Additionally, I would have liked to create a soundscape for the room to build a sensorially immersive experience for the users. However, due to time constraints, suffering from a creative burnout and a general feeling of anxiety I was unable to deliver on these expectations. Needless to say, I could have truly benefited from the mindful ceremony Satori offers during the final week of this assignment.
If I revisit this assignment in the future, I would strive to create the original visualisations I had planned for my artefact. In order to achieve the outcome I would like to, I will need to upskill my visual design tool kit regarding animation, 3D rendering and sound mixing.
Reflection on framework
There are several aspects I wish to reflect upon regarding the design framework my fellow classmate Daniel and I created for this assignment. Based on several speculative design and other case studies, the framework we conceived incorporated three main components; speculative design, a pluriversal worldview and indigenous approaches. Throughout my design process I attempted to stick to my framework as best I could however my approach to designing this artefact has changed from my previously outlined intentions.
The pluriversal approach was the main framework component which I adhered to. Our aim with taking a pluriversal worldview was to encourage the creation of a shared discourse of beliefs, experiences, and knowledge to create a pool of shared understanding about ourselves, the world and how we relate to others. Throughout the process of this assignment I made an effort to include a diverse range of case studies to inform my final concept. This pluriversal aspect was extremely helpful in opening my eyes to different ways of designing and how other designers approached creating works that interacted with the human experience. Overall, this speculative approach allowed me to create a pool of research which showcased a shared understanding about ourselves, the world and how we relate to others and the environments we live in.
The framework aspect of incorporating indigenous approaches to designing was a challenging element for my topic the future of tea and wellbeing. Going into my design I knew that I needed to be aware of incorporating alternative ways to designing aside from mainstream approaches. In my research for assignment two I interviewed a pacific psychologist, Julia Ioane, in order to incorporate the Maori and Pacific ways of designing for wellbeing that are local to New Zealand. Taking her insights in my artefact ideation phase I briefly explored how these could be applied to the creation of a tea hub situated within Auckland based off of the case study by Lydia Mo Fan. If I would have chosen this concept to go forward with I would have been able to iterate indigenous ways of designing and co-design methods. However, as I did not choose this concept I struggled to find ways to incorporate indigenous worldviews into my final artefact.
In reflection, I really enjoyed having the speculative design method in my framework. Having an emphasis on using a speculative approach pushed me to be more creative in my design thinking and research. I especially enjoyed discovering how other designers took a speculative lens to push traditional practices, such as a tea ceremony, into the future. For example the glow in the dark tea room was a discovery which I attribute a lot of inspiration for my final artefact. In the future, I wish to continue to explore speculative designs and incorporate this framework into my skill set.
References
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