Ichiyo: Fragile and Transient Interaction in Neighborhood

TL;DR

Ichiyo introduces a leaf-based, environmentally friendly medium to enhance fragile, transient neighbor interactions by encoding QR codes on leaves that link to a shared online space for messages. The method combines offline leaf engraving with a web application to enable indirect communication among pedestrians who encounter the leaves. The authors demonstrate feasibility with a rapid production pipeline using off-the-shelf laser cutters on fallen leaves and report on a public exhibition involving thousands of leaves and over a thousand visitors. The work contributes a novel approach to urban HCI that emphasizes ecological impact, ephemeral social ties, and scalable future applications beyond neighborhood interaction, such as advertising or public messaging on natural media.

Abstract

As the Internet develops, social networking and other communication tools have transformed people's relationships into something fast, visible, and geographically huge. However, these communication tools have not expanded opportunities for acquainting oneself with neighbors outside one's social network; rather, they have comparatively diminished occasions for interacting with unfamiliar neighbors by prioritizing communication with existing friends. Therefore, we invented the medium Ichiyo to increase the opportunities to think of neighbors walking along the same street or in the same neighborhood and to expand the imagination of those who pass by and those who used to be there. Thus, users can engage in indirect interaction. We used commercially available laser cutters to engrave QR codes on leaves that are naturally found in our living space to prevent environmental invasion. The QR codes lead to a communal space on the web where users can freely leave messages. By engraving QR codes, information can be virtually expanded to be presented. To get the feedback of Ichiyo, we let a total of several thousand people experience a new way of communication as a part of the exhibition ''iii Exhibition 2022'', an art exhibition at the University of Tokyo. A total of more than 1,000 leaves engraved with QR codes were prepared and scattered at the exhibition site and along the road from the nearest station to the venue.

Figures (2)

• Figure 1: Leaves fixed to the plywood in a grid pattern using curing tape. We engraved QR codes of 20 mm to 30 mm, depending on the size of the leaves.
• Figure 2: User interface of the web application part of Ichiyo.