Week One: Sensory Research
The first week of the MA/UX design program at UAL challenged me immediately and made me look at user experience design differently. We received our first brief, and it felt overwhelmingly abstract: to create a dance experience inspired by a place, but this brief helped me think about how people feel about he world rather than how they see it.
Our group was assigned the Twinings Tea Shop as our location. I went in ready to look at a beautiful storefront and a cozy interior (which I did), but I was immediately met with another sense when I walked in. The layers of heral scents consumed the small, narrow hallway of the store. Many customers we talked to compared it to a warm hug and felt as if they could slow down when they entered. We also noticed how they give extensive acknowledgment to the places and cultures that the tea is from. There are many interactive activities throughout the store that showcase where the tea is cultivated.
Doing this in-person location research gave me valuable insights into how different elements shape user experience from a sensory perspective. It revealed how customers form emotional connections to a place. While this week consists of less project work, I still learned about types of research methods that can be applied to abstract concepts.
Outside of the brief this week, we were visited by Aaron McPeake, who spoke about Engaging with Interactive Sound and Sculpture. McPeake works with bell bronze, the same material used for church bells. He gave us a unique design challenge: without seeing the piece, we were asked to use clay-like material, paper, and pencil to create a representation of the artwork described only through audio. First, the artist described his own work, followed by a viewer who had no connection to it. The piece being described was a pair of breasts in a case. At first, we all laughed and questioned, “Are we really making breasts on the first day?” But as we listened more closely, we mirrored the viewer’s reaction: coping with humor at first, then developing a deeper understanding once the full context was revealed.
At the end of the week, I gained a better understanding of sensory perception. While this project is going to be an abstract challenge, I am excited to explore sensory experiences through the Twinings Tea Shop.
