Designing for
Synesthetic Perception
interactive exhibit
Synesthesia is the obscuring of the five senses, which results in the phenomenon of being able to “taste colors” or “see sound”, and only a small 4% margin of the population experiences this form of neurodivergence. It has been reported that women are more likely to experience synesthesia than men, and it is more frequent in those who have creative minds, such as artists. Stanford Medicine states that women have more vivid memory recall than men, which could be a factor in why women are six times more likely to have this form of neurodivergence than men. It can manifest in different forms, such as color-sound synesthesia, in which a synesthete sees different colors depending on the sound they hear. Another common form is grapheme-color synesthesia, allowing synesthetes to associate a certain word, number, or letter to a certain color. While there are ways to induce these sensations with drugs, synesthesia is set apart from drug-induced hallucinations simply due to the fact that the experience of synesthesia is consistent.
Designing for Synesthetic Perception is a handmade art installation that provides a simulation of what it is like experiencing color-sound synesthesia. With ambient music and Arduino-powered lights that flash with each corresponding note that plays, the audience will gain an immersive experience that teaches them about the lesser-known neurodivergence that very few get to experience. This project aims to inform more people about what synesthesia is, and while it poses no physical harm to those who have it, it would still be informative for those who may not have heard of it, and insightful for those who may unknowingly have synesthesia.
This art installation consists of handmade paper-mache lamps and arduino circuit boards that are programmed to flash to the corresponding sound of the ambient music that plays in the background. A total of five lanterns is on display, each flashing a different color along with the music.
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