An interactive exhibition exploring the links between material science and the sounds of metals in musical instruments. Used Blender and Adobe Illustrator to work across 2D / 3D media.

Concept

Metal has been used in instruments for hundreds if not thousands of years – but what makes a xylophone sound different than church bells? With modern materials analysis tools and a bit of materials science knowledge, it turns out we can learn a lot about what gives metal its distinctive sound!

Working with a team of material science students, I helped design an interactive exhibition inspired by micro.ooo’s micro museum concepts. Our exhibition focused on metallic acoustics, the metal-making process, and its impact on the environment.

Design

Bringing the CAD of our design into blender allowed me to map the flow of information in 3D.

Then, I laid out sections in more depth on a 2D canvas. My team and I filled in information collaboratively, frequently referencing the physical mockup to inform our design.

Interaction

Museums should be fun…and maybe even a bit noisy! This small form factor allowed us to bring auditory and tactile play into the experience.

With a hammer, viewers could hear the effects of heat treating on steel, helping connect the dots to the science behind our experiments.

Alongside our microscope scans, we included the treated samples for reference.

What’s Next?

This project definitely opened up my understanding of interaction design in the physical space, and I’m particularly interested in ways to further inspire these interactions with digital aides – where necessary. Not just electronics for electronics sake, but adding a meaningful live storytelling component to an experience like this would be a fun challenge!