Heartbeasts

"Heartbeats" is a project exploring the potential of the biometric data as a design tool. The pulse is a tactile representation of one's state, explicitly linked to a specific moment (time, place, location, emotions). Heart rates are constantly changing and vary from person to person. The incorporation of the heart rate into the design process brings new possibilities for the coexistence of design and technology. Universal yet individual, heart rates are a personalised description that can result in unique visual representations. One-of-a-kind graphics, created by and with an individual's input, are depictions and artefacts at the same time. Our heart rate is instinctive, uncontrollable and largely invisible; the graphics therefore form a valuable ledger of our activity.

The series explores one's emotional reaction to a set of movies and songs. Every colour accent is linked to the piece's original artwork; every poster has a caption with details about a movie/song, with max and min bpm recorded.

Heart rate is measured using webcam through the Eulerian Video Magnification. Data is collected and transformed through Processing.