06｜5-in-5: Day4 - Narcissus Face

5-in-5: Day 4

While conducting secondary research on non-verbal communication, I came across a study titled "What's in a Smile? Neural Correlates of Facial Embodiment During Social Interaction." by Leonhard Schilbach, Simon B. Eickhoff, Andreas Mojzisch & Kai Vogeley. The research highlights that beyond spoken language, a significant part of human communication relies on facial expressions. According to neuroscience studies, researchers found that humans unconsciously mimic others' facial expressions during interactions. For example, when someone smiles at us, we often instinctively smile back. This phenomenon, known as facial mimicry, suggests that facial expressions (such as smiling or frowning) play a crucial role in the quality of social interactions.

Building on this research, I started thinking about the connection between faces, projection, and reflection. This reminded me of the Greek myth of Narcissus, who gazed into his reflection on the water’s surface. Inspired by this idea, I used smiling as the core concept for my project on Day 4 of 5-in-5.

Using p5.js and ml5.js, I created an interactive garden based on face tracking technology. When the system detects a smiling face, flowers begin to fall from the top of the screen and pile up. The more smiling faces detected, the faster the flowers fall, creating a collective interaction based on shared expressions.

(Currently, the visual style is still in its prototype stage. In the future, I plan to refine the design and incorporate water ripple effects for a more immersive experience.)

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