Process

While looking for the initial concept of the project, we were particularly captivated by the idea of converting negative thoughts into positive ones rather than completely casting them away. We were intrigued by the idea of creating a medium that would help the user to convert the negative memories to a source of growth and renewal.

At the beginning of the design process, we had already decided what our input and output sources will be. We decided that the input sources would be the digital legacies that represent negative thoughts, i.e. photos of the ex-significant other, that may be somewhat hard to let go all at once. And we decided the output source to be a plant, which would represent a growth and renewal, as mentioned before.

Next up, we had to come up with an idea for how to convert the input sources to output, and how to naturally and directly manage the process. We brainstormed for ideas of using these sources as an energy source for the plant to grow, and we decided to make a little ‘game’ where when you delete certain number of the pictures, text messages or any digital legacies related to negative memories, the pre-programmed pot would provide the plant with source of energy, such as water, sunlight, fertilizer, and music. However, later in the process, we disposed the idea of ‘game’ and made it into more of a solemn process of self-meditation to emphasize the seriousness that the life of the plant entails as a stake. We made that the plant itself to would not be interactive, because it serves as a ‘symbol’ representing how much you’re growing through the process of letting go, and should not be tempered with for the sake of an accurate representation.