Reading this peice made me pause and rethink how I approach interactivity. I’ve definitely been guilty of overexplaining my work, or failing to consider what an inexperienced user might try to do with, most notably in our midterm projects for this very course. It was easy to tell the audience of these projects exactly what they were supposed to do as opposed to watching them actually use it and naturally interact with it. But this reading reminds me that interactive art isn’t about controlling the outcome. It’s about inviting possibility. The idea that the artwork is just the beginning of a conversation really stuck with me. It shifts the focus away from self-expression and toward shared experience, which honestly feels more generous, and more exciting.
What stuck with me the most was the reminder to “listen”. To actually observe what people did, how they interacted, what they didn’t do, and keep that in mind for future projects. We can’t control how people will react to things, but we can control our reactions to them. Letting go of control isn’t easy, but it might be the most meaningful part of the process overall.