[ Work in progress ]

I’ve been interested in various instrumentation methods of human heart activity, such as sphygmograph, photoplethysmograph, and electrocardiograph. Sphygsmograph has the longest history among above three documented in both ancient China and Greek texts [See reference 1]. Sphygsmograph particularly has discourses upon subjectivity versus objectivity due to the nature of how physician perceives patient’s pulse, which is by “touch”.
Interpretation of haptic sign is the essential inspiration of this project. In ancient China, it’s called qiemo (palpating the mo; pulse-taking); there are similar enthusiasm on pulse in early western medicine, such as extensive discussion on the close association of pulse and palpitation and of sphygmos and palmos, keywords for further reading “Rufus of Ephesus”, “Aegimius”, “Galen”, “Hippocratic”, and “Praxagoras of Cos”.
In ancient Chinese medical texts, physician judge patient’s condition by applying different pressure (between physician fingers and patient’s inner wrist) when taking pulse. Styles of touch is, therefore, the medium that transforms patterns in pulse signal into tactile language/knowledge.
This physical installation is composed of hijack board, force sensitive resistor, iPod, and machined acrylic case. Visualizing spectrum of user’s touch in disorienting waveform(by subtle changes in repetition and contrast) is a metaphor of that styles of touch is one of the determinants for perceived patterns from pulse signal.

Reference
- (Part – I Styles of Touching) Kuriyama, Shigehisa (1999). The expressiveness of the body and the divergence of Greek and Chinese medicine. New York: Zone Book

- Bridget Riley

- Hijack Board