Not Your Eyes

Fictional "ad-blocking" Eyeglass

2020

Keywords
Critical Design
Design Fiction
Material Speculation‍
Keywords
Interactive Wearable
Embodied Interaction
Technology Critique
Tools
Processing
Arduino
Rhino
Advisor
Prof. Sang Won-Leigh
Noah Posner
Teammates
Liyin Liu
My Role
Concept Development
Form Design
Material Experiment
Prototyping
Innovations
Design Fiction: Speculates a dystopian future where flashing ads invade our vision, critiquing how emerging technologies manipulate perceptions for profit.
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Symbolic Form: Inspired by deconstructivism, the design represents the chaos and manipulation inherent in technological control.
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Speculative Interaction : Leverages material opacity changes to contrast chaotic ads with curated clarity, inviting bodily engagement and reflection.
Methods
From Sci-Fi To Design Fiction
By 2050, relentless lobbying by advertisers has transformed public spaces into cacophonies of towering billboards, each pulsating with alternating, nerve-wracking ads. In response, retailers introduce “ad-tuned” glasses, offering discounts and coupons to those who wear them. The glasses, “tailored” to each user's habits and interests, replace the chaotic flashing with serene, static ads—offering a brief respite from the visual assault.
At first, the promise of savings draws in consumers. But soon, the appeal shifts: it’s not the coupons that matter, but the fleeting peace the glasses provide. Unwittingly, people surrender their freedom of choice, voluntarily embracing a curated reality—a quiet compromise in a world dictated by ads.
Form Design

Inspired by deconstructivism in architecture, the design reimagines the form of a television, a symbol of mass media, to challenge the rationalized order of consumer capitalism. Techniques like fragmentation, dislocation, and exposure of raw elements convey the chaos of a dystopian future shaped by advertising and technology.

Exploded Form: The shattered TV fragments reflect the wearer’s emotional exhaustion from consumer culture, with irregular shapes intensifying as the chaos grows.
Dislocated Pieces: The deliberate misalignment symbolizes the chaos and disruption caused by an ad-saturated future, contrasting with the perceived order and control promoted by consumer capitalism.
Exposed Frames: Unfinished elements—metal rods, silicon hoses, and unframed “screen” (glass)—evoke a raw, futuristic aesthetic that questions our relationship with technology.
Contribution & Reflection

We often complain about the constant presence of ads online but have grown accustomed to them, overlooking the darker side of technology. Services like Gmail and Facebook track our data to target us with ads, shaping our desires for products we don't need.

This project challenges our passive acceptance of this system, urging reflection on how technology is exploited by the powerful. It reveals that our apparent freedom of choice is often manipulated, distorting our sense of self and reinforcing consumer capitalism, turning us into passive consumers blinded to false needs.