Prototype 2 / Encode Shape

< Introduction >

What remains of our gestures once the system has finished interpreting us?

This prototype began with that question, where I learnt how our expressions are converted into features, coordinates, and labelled datasets. I wanted to expose that hidden pipeline and turn the invisible work of datafication into an experience users could actually witness.

Encode Shape transforms five hand-drawn gestures into into encoded shapes. Each drawing is reduced through a sequence of algorithmic transformations from stroke to pixels, dots, and text. The system mimics how platforms record, normalise, and classify user behaviour. What begins as personal expression is flattened into machine-readable traces. It visualises the core idea of this research project that our gestures are never "just gestures" .