DDP Soribyeol (Sound Star) Project
2013 - 2014 / DDP Permanent Collection
S. Bahn, S. Jang, Y. Choi, J. Ahn, G. Wohn - Ideation & UX Design
S. Bahn, S. Jang - Interaction System Design & Development
Y. Choi, J. Ahn - Visuals, UI Design, 3D Modeling
G. Wohn - Director
Interactive System Design
Soribyeol (Korean: 소리별, sound star) is a bio-inspired, sound-activated interactive sphere for children featuring synaesthetic multi-user interaction. It was created as permanent exhibition content for the Dongdaemun Design Plaza (DDP) Playground, which opened in March 2014.
The Soribyeol experience is divided into several stages, during which the children bring the sphere(star) to life with their voices. They stir the star awake, paint the star, and create lifeforms to inhabit it with their singing. I developed the core system module that uses their singing voices as input to generate organic forms in different colors, shapes, sizes and movement according to its point of origin and acoustic properties.
Sphere Display System
Sphere radius: 1-2 meters
System Components
Interaction Stages
Stage 1: Awakening the Star
Children are encouraged to wake the star up by making sounds into the mic and clapping out loud. The star starts to stir awake and jolts into action when the clapping persists audibly for a certain time.
Stage 2: Painting the Star
The guide instructs the children to start singing "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" to paint the star with their voices. The mics each have their own unique brush to paint with, which together represent the four classical elements of nature: water, fire, air(wind), and earth. The color and size/spread of brushes correspond respectively to the frequency and amplitude of the sound.
Image brushes representing the four classical elements
Visual mapping of the sound
Stage 3: Filling the Star with Lifeforms
Children freely gather around and make sounds into the mics to generate lifeforms(agents) to inhabit the star. Each mic generates a different type of creature with a visually distinct shape and motion. The louder the sound, the more creatures that come into being.
The four agent types are also symbolic of the four classical elements. Fish swim in water, moths (insects) flutter their wings and gather around fire, birds soar and glide in the air, and four-legged creatures (mammals) roam the earth. Each creature is represented by an iconic, minimal shape and exhibits movement expressive of its character.
All agents are visualized in white to distinguish them from the colored background.
Stage 4: Closing (Goodbye)
Once the star reaches its maximum capacity in the number of lifeforms, it proceeds to its final stage. A cheerful melody plays in the background as agents dynamically fill the screen. A thank you message and heart shapes appear before the program ends.
Agent-driven generative system experiments
