Week 13 / Post Open Studios

Showcase and Feedback

This week, I reflected on my project based on the feedback gathered during Open Studios, and refined my work accordingly. After the intensity of Open Studios which already felt like the final, I was quite burnt out.

I took a step back from the technical work and focused on finishing my publications, and catching up with my CPJ. In total, I developed five publications: three for the prototypes and two catalogues of making for experiments and prototyping.

From Open Studios feedback, I refined the final prototype's A-C publications to improve clarity and readability. I redesigned each cover to clearly state what each publication targets e.g. "[1] Body as Data". I wanted readers to see at first glance that the prototype's process is: body > behaviour > identity.

I also increased font sizes, and incorporated images captured during Open Studios to help users connect the content to specific parts of the prototype. I also revised the process breakdown, simplifying the language to make it more accessible and easier to understand.

To demonstrate the depth of the project and ensure earlier works were not lost, I developed two additional publications as part of the catalogue of making: one for experiments and one for prototypes. These publications clearly outline the processes each work examines and the layer it targets, showing the progression from broad exploration to a more focused investigation of algorithmic identity.

The covers are deliberately designed to reflect this trajectory: the experiments cover uses pixelation, referencing the facial mapping in the biometric stage, while the prototype cover incorporates numerical values, echoing how mapped data is translated into depth and measurable form.

Thoughts on Publications

As I was planning these publications, I found myself questioning whether I was producing too many printed materials. However, I realised that since my final work is largely digital, these publications needed to stand on their own, especially in moments when I am not present to guide viewers through the project. This shifted my thinking from excess to necessity, where each publication functions as a self-contained explanation of the work.

I was also intentional about maintaining consistency with the structure of my final prototype, which operates through a three-staged process. Carrying the logic of “A + B = C” into the Viva Voce setup, it made sense to produce one publication for each layer, clearly distinguishing between body, behaviour, and identity. At the same time, I did not want the earlier stages of the project to be overlooked, so I separated the catalogue of making into two publications: experiments and prototypes. This allowed me to more clearly articulate the progression from broad, clustered explorations to a focused investigation of biometric, behavioural, and identity layers.