Evolution of the project- trying to choose one of three main ideas....

I've been thinking alot this past week about the difference between 'art' and 'design' in interactive media. I don't want to get too caught up in this thought, because it is such a vast topic/discussion, and I want to start focussing more detail on my actual concept development, however this question mark is creeping up in my decision making regarding how to move forward because alot of my research and ideas for installations could fall under the category of 'art' rather than 'design', yet considering my on-going development, I feel I ought to be focussing more on 'design', because of the career path I want to pursue. But then I think, this year is about exploring and being open to new ideas, and I am enjoying that because gaining a wider understanding can feed really well into my knowledge of interactive design

So, what I am thinking is that I might create an installation, and that would fall under the category of art becuase it will be very idea led, but will hopefully convey alot of meaning derived from what I have been learning, but will also be relevant to my aspirations for a career in interactive design, because it will use interactive technologies and I will look in detail at userability, and the way I present my information. I am going to look at (possibly touchscreen based) installations, but use standard design principles that are applied to the web to help with it's development. One way I could do this is to set myself a more exact brief fom a supposed client, perhaps a museum, and approach the final product in the way I would need to if I were actually working in an interactive design company. I could create a proposal for the actual installation, and use the computer to create some working elements to demonstrate how it would work, and an animated overview of the space.

Over the last week I have also been reveiwing my research ideas, and identified four areas that have been constant and re-inventing themselves throughout my whole project. They come under these headings:

1- Memory and Time Travel -how a collection of objects can be interpeted by each person in a unique, personal way that relate to memory and cause a feeling of time travel due to the thought patterns activated by the brain)
keywords: Memory / time travel / eisentstein / montage / science /brain / thoughts / personal / unique

2-Interperson Interaction -an installation that gets people to work together to get the best experience. Possibly an installation that uses people to show how freedom of thought does exist and should not be dwarfed by an authors own ideas....will play with the ideas surrounding control/freedom in interactive media. mental interaction would be a huge factor to consider, possibly a game installation with people as players and pieces, trust would be a big theme.
keywords: people / social interaction / barthes- death of the author / teamwork / games / psychology / control / freedom / ideas / individuality/ mental engagement

3-Interactive Book - an installation that uses an existing (preferable really old) storybook and makes it seem magical through use of interactive technologies and breaking of the fourth wall. Would have sensors in the pages, and also somehow behave differently with different people. Possibly could be a touchscreen book made from e-paper(if that is possible) which allows for diverse choices in plot. The space would somehow mirror the themes/landscape of each page, and would make the user feel like they were IN the book. Turning the page would change the surrounding landscape. Could even be possible that the user can talk to the characters in the pages. OR an interactive digital book on screen, where you can't proceed to the next page, until you've solved a problem on that page... the solution would make the button apparent.
keywords: mental interaction / magic / children / espen areseth / digital storytelling / non linear narrative / pyschical interaction / ubiquitous computing / cybernetics / physical interaction

I'm so keen on all these ideas that choosing one is quite a task. I think I've narrowed it down to either 2 or 3, and am aiming tol make my final choice by the end of Tuesday(tomorrow) so I can get a structured idea of what to get done over the Christmas vacation, and how long I can develop the idea before I need to get practical and producing the deliverables.

If you have any thoughts on what sounds best, please tell me!