Research Paper Losing My Balance by Koos Bergmans

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Losing My Balance. Welcome to my graduation research. In this document I am going to take you with me through a personal experience what translated into a installation. I experieced my last months as fragile, many doubts on what I was doing. This project helped me opening up towards the people around me and getting back into balance. Becoming aware of what balance in life is and learn from the hard things in life. - Koos 30 - 5 - 2022

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Koos Bergmans 0976258 Product Design Autonomous

Public & Private

I N T R O D U C T I O N

Have you ever heard the phrase: “I am losing my balance.” When you hear this, what do you think? Because balance is a wide topic and has a lot of different meanings. If you ask me, I am instantly thinking of the song: Losing my balance by J Cole. Were he talks about balance in life, coping with hard moments and decisions, losing people, and hiding yourself from, because of insecurities. All these topics are related to people, some more than others. But losing balance in life isn’t the only kind of balance I think of when I hear the phrase, balance is life ”Life as in nature”. Nature is the founder of balance, and we use her force every day to keep ourselves standing. Gravity is the most famous kind of balance we know. Because of gravity we can play with balance, you can let a ball bounce, or roll down a slope with your bike. People can even trip over their own feet because of gravity. Finding a way of combining these two ways of balances into a project has a reason for me. To find balance in life sometimes you need to accept that you are about to lose the balance you have. The way I lost my balance was the passing of my aunt in October 2021. What happened to the family was devastating. After the funeral it became more and more real, Francis is gone, for good. At the time I was travelling abroad for work. This resulted in that I wasn’t there to support my loved ones. I noticed that this created distance between me and my family. This distance was something I never had experienced. The way people deal with grief is different, some grow closer, some shut themselves off and some try not to think about the things which were happening. I was the last one. Pushing my feeling away because otherwise it only made me sadder and sadder. This resulted in friction with my parents and sisters. I wasn’t there for them because I was thinking egoistic but most important, I feared the feelings. The most important thing I learned of this period was the following: Some actions you do have consequences which you can’t oversee, till it happened. Dealing with grief made me push my feelings away, which helped me for a week or two. The friction at home was caused because of my action of suppressing my feelings. I never wanted to influence people around me with my actions, but I wasn’t aware of the consequence. Consequences are a common thing in life. Especially in the physical meaning of balance. When you lose your balance in a physical way, moments later you will be hugging the ground. I find gravity an interesting part of nature and a perfect way to find a combination within the meaning of balance. How can an interactive system create an effect that raises awareness about the consequences of our actions in our surroundings? As a product designer I am fascinated by triggering people to an action. Using my own experiences to create artworks that are related to others. For me a good artwork is a translation of my feelings or experience. Within artwork it is not about me, it’s about how I create a translation where the user/experiencer can interpret the meaning by themselves. During the search for balance in life I designed a system that represents

Losing My Balance

Introduction

I N T R O D U C T I O N

balance for me. The system is simple and structured, and every aspect of the system is needed to let it function properly. The system is my representation of balance in life, and I wanted to find a way to let one interact with the system to raise awareness how an action can create a consequence that influences its surroundings. Using my expertise to create the best workflow for myself, resulted in the following research method: “Field research” where I went to the Art biennale in Venice for work to build up an installation with DRIFT and to find spatial inspirations. Theoretical research where I used work of other artists, scientist, and philosophers to support my findings that helped me defining the right path of my project. As a designer/artist I am always execute physical tests. This type of research is the method that comes at the last part of my research. Everything comes together at this last chapter. The creating of something new, a translation of my experience that creates an interactive conversation piece that raises awareness on the consequences of our actions. Which is a common thing we as humans understand, actions create reactions. Every action is different, every person sees the consequences of an action different, and everyone will experience “Losing My Balance” different just because we think different. Connecting each other through a system / installation by looking to the same object but experiencing something different.

Losing My Balance

Introduction

Losing my balance

Pag. 6 - 11

1.1

The Experience

Pag. 7

1.2

What is balance

Pag. 6 - 9

1.3

Balance in physics

Pag. 10

Interaction

Pag. 13 - 16

2.1

Aha/Eureka moment

Pag. 13

2.2

Curiosity

Pag. 13 - 14

2.3

Touch

Pag. 14 - 16

The System

Pag. 18 - 20

3.1

How does the system work

Pag. 18

3.2

Translation of the system

Pag. 19 - 20

Physical research

Pag. 22 - 25

4.1

System 1

Pag. 22

4.2

System 2

Pag. 23

4.3

System 3

Pag. 24

4.4

System 4

Pag. 25

Conclusion

Pag. 26

Bibliography

Pag. 26 - 27

L O S I N G - M Y - B A L A N C E

T H E - E X P E R I E N C E

“Sometimes bad things that happen in our lives put us directly on the path to the best things that will ever happen to us.” – Nicole Reed Bad things in life can get you to a point of realization. This realization gave me a new perspective on the problems I encountered. After losing my aunt last October 2021 everything felt hard and heavy. During the time I was working in the US so I couldn’t be there for the family, which was heartbreaking when I got the news. Weeks passed, still working and I noticed during the time of grief that people cope with it differently. Everyone has their own path to walk along to get back to their balance. It was really frustrating to notice. “Am I doing this wrong?” I was putting distance between my sisters, mom, and dad. Thinking it would help to avoid the confrontations of our different paths. Two months later I saw my cousin for the first time after the funeral. Before the passing of my aunt, I didn’t see her for two years. Sometimes bad things bring good things. Walking through Amsterdam we had a lot of fun and very good conversations. My cousin said: “You are really aware Koos.” Which was the opposite of what I was feeling. I was trying to fill the role that people around me needed. “Listen to the silence. It has so much to say.” - Rumi Arriving back home in Rotterdam, looking at the sunset and thinking: “Why does it feel so unbalanced”. Heaving the pressure of a project about prosthetics that I want to do for years next to the feeling I am not doing enough to support my loved ones. Not seeing my friends enough. Struggling with the time management of work and school. Fuck man life is hard. “Just when you feel you have no time to relax, know, this is the moment you most need to relax.” – Matt Haig I was in Venice for work. Sitting in the sun drinking an espresso thinking about what I am going to do. I remember thinking: “Why is finding the balance so hard?” Life isn’t in balance. It is a moving thing that is constantly shifting towards the feelings you are experiencing the most. The next days I was by myself in Venice which was what I apparently needed to get my head clear again. Thinking back to what my niece said, I am so busy figuring out what I think and feel and that I forgot to enjoy the moment. “All the suffering, stress, and addiction comes from not realizing what you already are, and what you are looking for.” - Jon Kabat Zinn – A project about balance is the result of this realization. I enjoyed it. I enjoyed the growth. I enjoyed the conversations with friends about the growth. I noticed that this age is the moment you are becoming mature. Mature as in, becoming aware of your

Losing My Balance

The Experience

T H E - E X P E R I E N C E

own growth and be able to talk about it. Opening and becoming more connected. For the outside I can appear direct or not caring, but if you are close to me, I open. Tell more about how I experience my life. I noticed that the opening didn’t come with words this time. It came through the project. Creating a translation of how I felt and what I have learned. Which made me more aware of what I as an artist/designer want to be. More open.

Losing My Balance

The experience

W H A T - I S - B A L A N C E

Finding back my balance started with doing research of what balance meant for me. If you ask me, balance is a force that you don’t notice till something happens that shifts the balance. This shift was the passing of my aunt. This switch made such an impact that the balance in my life felt off. As a designer I always want to create works where I can express my feelings. This feeling was way too vague in the beginning. Balance in life, what are you, buddha? I was looking for answers why balance was the way to go. I found that different religions have different definitions of how you get your life in balance. In the book, Master your mindset, Pilarczyk explains that there is no right way of dealing with hard moments. The way one has his or her own path to come to a goal. Some say you should set goals; others say you shouldn’t set goals because this can create expectations. I found this interesting because during the last few months I noticed everyone in the family was dealing with grief in their own way. (Pilarczyk 54) There are several ways to interpret balance. For me, “life balance” feels like a constant moving force. It’s a force that you don’t notice till something happens that shifts the balance. According to Gustavo Razzetti: “Balance is bringing things into harmony. It’s not something that you can get, but something that you continually do. Life is a game in which you are continually juggling many balls in the air.” (14) He mentions that to get balance back in life you need to lose it. By trying to keep all the “juggle balls” in the air, the fear of losing it is blocking us to let go. Sometimes you need to let go of control to let the parts fall into their place. “Seek balance in the long-term, not every instance in life.” (Razzetti)

The search towards balance was a thought process. It becomes a constant doubt if what you are doing is the right thing. Gladly the doubt for me was a change of project which pointed me towards a project that is personal and fragile. Fragile like balance. It can shift out of balance in a short time. This fragileness is a translation of balance that is known in another aspect of the word balance.

Losing My Balance

What is balance?

B A L A N C E - I N - P H Y S I C S

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Think about balance. Now think about a scale. Or think about a spoon you are balancing on your finger. Balance is nature. The force that creates this is called gravity. Notation 1g = 9.81 m/s² downwards force. This will make sure an object will fall if there is no resistance. When you add a resistance, the object can be slowed down or even be in perfect balance. A seesaw is the example of this. For instance: Julia is on one side and Hidde is on the other side of the seesaw. Because of the force Hidde pushed and the weight of Julia, Hidde will go up. If Hidde and Julia are not doing anything the one who weighs the most will go down and hit the ground. (see Fig. 1)

Fig. 1, Example Julia and Hidde

This is the most common way of implementing balance in physics. As a designer/ artist I’m fascinated by systems and its quest of finding a system that provide the perfect balance with the use of gravity which is the base of the construction. Scale is the most common physical use of gravity to define balance. (Büttner and Renn) The use of gravity within my project was a great step towards finding the final system. Gravity is also the base of creating tension. Tension on a string or a line is created by a force. For instance: An object is hanging on a line. The weight of the object creates the tension on the line, by means of gravity. This only works if the other end of the line is attached to a constant counter force. A beam or a ceiling is a point to attach a line and take a force, the counterforce. On the line there will be a force, equal to the weight of the object, and will ensure that the line will follow the most direct connection towards the object. (see fig. 2) A product that uses the technique of

Fig. 2, Tension on a line

tension is a bow and arrow. If one is pulling on the string, you will create tension, so much that if you release the string the arrow will use the returning force to fly away. (SantoPietro) Creating an object that is a representation of how I see balance; I see balance in more forms than just one. Probably like you. Balance isn’t a word that fits with one thing. Balance is moving. Balance is fragile. Like Albert Einstein said: “Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you have to keep moving.”

Losing My Balance

Balance in physics

B A L A N C E - I N - P H Y S I C S

11.

As a design/artist I can create combinations of my life’s experience and put that into a physical translation. For me a good design/art piece is not necessarily a direct translation of how the artist feels but the way one translates one’s feeling into something that is related for more people. In this way more people can have their own interpretation of what the artwork is about. For some it is just an interesting installation but for the other one it can be an extreme experience. Doris Salcedo (Colombian) is an artist who has an inspiring way of thinking. During an exhibition in the Tate Modern London, she created a crack in the concrete floor. (see fig. 3) It represented the diving of people because of violence. In the crack was a metal mesh which you could see when you paid attention to detail. The idea behind the mesh: “It is for the people who want to see and notice.” - Doris Salcedo - (Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago) Paying attention to detail is something I really like to do within my work. The findings within balance are more than just start points. They have a meaning for me. The fragileness of balance is the way life works. Balance in life is like force you don’t feel till something has happened. Combining this with the fascination of a physical translation which is gravity, force and tension that can cause another fascination that I have: the “Aha/Eureka” moments.

Fig. 3, Shibboleth by Doris salcedo, Tate Modern, London, 2007

Losing My Balance

Balance in physics

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2.1

Aha/Eureka moment We all know the term. Aha/Eureka moments. Translation: “a cry of joy or satisfaction when one finds or discovers something”, according to the first Google research. But an eureka or aha moment is more. I’m always trying to find challenging solutions. Some call that creativity, and the feeling of finding a solution is lovely. It boosts your motivation and causes that the developing of new ideas come easier. This is how I experience the aha moments on a daily life. Within my works I try to establish interaction with the user, which is a key component. I believe that if one does a certain interaction and discovers what it does to themselves, they can experience an eureka moment. According to the research of Christian Windischberger who did research about what happens in the brain when there is an Aha moment. In his research he discovered that an Aha moment facilitates long term memory storage. (Tik et al. 3247) Knowing that Aha moments trigger a long-term memory means this provides room to create a good conversation piece. Using interaction and a good translation of what you want to tell.

2.2

Curiosity To create an interaction first you need one to become curious. Curiosity is the internal motivation to learn. (Peeters) What makes you curious? Ollafur Elliason during his interview The Shape of an Idea explains: “Before an idea you might experience a feeling or instinct.” (Marc-Christoph Wagner) This makes me curious; this feeling or instinct feels common to me as a designer. To get one curious Roland van der Vorst wrote a book on how we get tempted every day. He describes that there are several strategies within curiosity to trigger someone. (Vorst 54) Strategy one is called: withhold something. This is a way to let one feel like a treasure hunter. The goal is to create a question at the participant. What is going to happen? What did happen? Using this method, you can let one think about the experience to hopefully figure the question out. Other methods are to disrupt a moment. Imagine, you are at a party and suddenly all the lights go on because someone accidently pushed the light switch. Where is the attention in the room? The way I see this is a little similar as the aha moment. Something happens. Your instinct pulls you to the action. There is a reason why I didn’t answer the question, because leaving something in the experience open, is the last method I implemented in this research. (Vorst 54) The attention in the room is were someone is thinking of. As Elliason mentions about this work; “you are feeling the same but experiencing something different.” (MarcChristoph Wagner)

Losing My Balance

Interaction

13.

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Meaning that everyone has their own thoughts and feelings that come with the experience. The use of people’s interaction can be a subtle way to let one create their own experience. Donald Norman wrote numerous books about design. In Emotional Design he explains how important the value of our emotions are in relation to a product. He tells a story about three tea pots he owns; all are teapots, but they’re not all that useful. Picture. The least used teapot is the tilted one. ‘But’ explains Norman; “it has the best story behind it.” Which

Fig. 4, Teapots, 2005, Emotional Design by D. Norman

can be a reason to like the teapot more than the other two. Everyone has their own preferences within products. (see fig. 4)(Norman, Emotional Design: Why We Love (or Hate) Everyday Things 54) Do you have a favorite mock to drink from? Because it has a lot of volume? Or drinks lovely? Or does it have an emotional value? All good reasons to have a favorite product. My mock has a lovely touch, little texture but a smooth surface. Good comfortable handle to pick it up. Interaction is not only about emotions. The touch of an object is as important as the pull towards interacting.

Fig. 5, Flashback by Anish Kapoor, 1980 - 1998, manchesterartgallery.org

2.3

Touch After seeing the work of Anish Kapoor at the Venice Art Biennale I noticed that the works where appealing to be touched. Of course, you couldn’t touch them but still. It was attractive to do so. (see fig. 5)(“Anish Kapoor: Flashback”) Within this project I am creating the need that objects are to be touched and lifted. Appealing to be touched. According to the research of Northeastern University the behavior of touch is highly individual. The research was about how and when people touch certain objects. Through UV light the researchers could see where the object was touched the most.

Losing My Balance

Interaction

(see fig. 6) By comparing surfaces, they saw that smooth surfaces are the most touched but to smooth is also seen as “expensive”, so people are also more cautious. Very spiky surfaces are the least favorite surfaces to touch. Everyone touches in their own way. Looking at their experiments they used a variety of objects and observed the way people touched the objects. (Rogowitz et al.)

Fig. 6, “Three-dimensional art objects and their touch patterns, revealed by fluorescent imaging. Results for the subtractive and additive method are shown. These methods reveal a range of touching, tracing, and grasping gestures, which are useful for exploring how humans interact with art and real-world objects.” Rogowitz, Bernice, et al. “Touching Art.” Arxiv, IEEE VIS 2021, 1 Oct. 2021, arxiv.org/pdf/2110.00686.pdf.

Seeing the touch of behavior makes clear that objects that which are smooth are way more frequently touched than rough surfaces. The intersection lies in between if you ask me. It is the balance between the rough and smooth surfaces that makes one touch a surface. A designer that does this in another way is Rene Siebum. He created a stool that interacts with your body on a very gentle and subtle way. Inspired by the human spine, he used the movement of the spine into the movement of the chair. Another method one can be invited to get an interaction with an object. (see fig. 7, 8, 9) (Rene Siebum)

Fig, 7

Fig, 8

Fig, 9

Fig. 7, 8, 9, Spine Stool by Rene Siebum, 2013, Studio Rene Siebum, studiorenesiebum.nl/projects/spine-stool-48cm.

Losing My Balance

Interaction

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The touch of an object needs to be inviting. For my project the focus is the object that needs to be touched, it is necessary to set the installation in motion. The object is also the weight that creates the tension on the string. Because I want people to lift the weight, and I am focusing on the shape of the object. By doing experiments on shapes and ask people what shapes they like, I hope to find the best fitting shape that goes with the design.

Conclusion interaction

All these aspects of triggering interaction are all a base to let one interact with my installation / system. A combination of all these aspects is the way to go if you ask me. Causing an Aha moment by using curiosity to trigger them. The Aha moments come after the touch/lifting of the object. The aha moments appears when you as an individual decides to let the perfectly balance object fall by one small action. Lifting the weight that is touchable and appealing. The trigger of curiosity will happen by letting the participant figure out themselves what to do. This will trigger an Aha moment and hopefully a new pulse of curiosity, by letting the participant disrupt their surroundings by letting fall an object that creates a shadow in the room. The further it falls the bigger the shadow will be. The choice of someone is also influencing others that are experiencing the same installation. Will the user be aware of the consequence, just like I was after in the experience with my parents?

Losing My Balance

Interaction

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Translating my own experiences into an interactive installation using physics. This system is a translation of how I see life balance. Creating a system that is based around gravity, tension, and suspension. These elements together are creating a system of strings that are using each other’s force to let an object be balanced within the line. If a string’s tension is removed the object will fall, if the tension is back on the string, the object will be suspended again. The system is like balance in life. You need to have the heavy moments in life to enjoy the highs. See the weight of the system as the heavy moments and the suspended object as the highs. By noticing the heavy moments, you can learn from them. This is how I see the weight within the system. Just like Razzetti said; “let go of the control to let everything fall into place.” (Razzetti) Holding the weight and lift will make the highs come down so you can go up again. Getting your highs back up is also a thing where you need to invest in. Therefore, I implemented a mechanical system that will use a counterweight to let one lift the object back up. A double interaction where you can make a choice to let the highs down an let your surrounding be influenced towards the dark. Or using your actions to let your surroundings back into the light.

3.1

How does the system work The system I am referring to is inspired by the work of Kasper Kjeldgaard, a Denish designer that uses balance within one of his works. The Year of the Circle. He uses strings and weights to create hanging and balanced installations. As I explained a bit about forces within the part about balance in physics. I will go deeper into this specific system. (see fig. 10, 11) (Kjeldgaard)

Fig, 10

Fig, 11 Fig. 10, 11, “The Year of the Circle // Patrick Parrish Gallery - Kasper Kjeldgaard.” Kasper Kjeldgaard, Kasper Kjeldgaard, 21 Oct. 2017, cargocollective.com/kasperkasper/The-Year-of-the-Circle-Patrick-Parrish-Gallery.

Losing My Balance

The System

3.2

Translation of the system Balance feels fragile. The way I want the system need to look. Fragile. The system is open and structured just how I am as a designer but most important the openness of the system is how I see balance. It is a force you don’t notice till something happens that creates a shift in life. The main component within the system is a string with a weight that creates tension on the line. This line is the “lifeline”. Two other strings “helplines” are attached to an object that will be placed between the lifeline and the helplines. The helplines will make sure the forces of the of the lifeline is divided to let the object be in balance on the lifeline. The system is built up out of the following elements: Tension string – Lifeline - S1 This string is the base of the whole system. The weight that is attached to the end of the string provides a x amount of tension on the line. The reason I call it lifeline is because I see this line as the line that will provide you with the possibility to let the object fall just by removing the tension on the line. The weight – heavy moments within life - S2 The weight is attached to the lifeline to create the tension that will provide the user to interact with the installation. The weight represents the heavy moments in life. Moments like these happen and are not fun to deal with. The most important of these moments are the lessons they leave behind. By lifting the weight, embracing the heavy moments, you can let the object come down. The lifting of the object represents the learning part of the heavy moments. It is not about leaving it be or removing these thoughts, it is about seeing the things you can take with you to continue in life. Object – Highs - S3 The object contains two key elements, the helplines, and the object itself called highs. The helplines are fixed strings that are attached to the object that provide the forces of the lifeline are divided to let the object be suspended between the helplines and the lifeline. The highs are a representation of the good things in life. These moments are moving up and down along the lifeline. One can let the highs come down to go back up again this could have consequences for people in your surroundings. The counterweight – Invest - S4 Invest is a representation of getting your highs back up. Getting your balance in life back is not something that just happens. You need to take the time to bring it back up. Using a counterweight that needs another interaction to pull the highs back were you want them to be.

Losing My Balance

The System

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Light - S5 The goal of the installation is to let one become aware of the consequences of their actions in their surroundings. This means that there need to be a consequence if one makes an action. This effect is created by light. By using light, you can create a change in an environment. This change in the environment is the consequence of the action. The lower the highs get how bigger the shadow will be. The interaction will create a change that raises awareness of the consequences of our actions in our surroundings. Mechanism - S6 The whole installation is built on the use of natures basics of balance. Therefore, I decided to use a mechanical system to let one use the counterweight. The mechanism is created by pulleys and sprockets. These are a good way to let the object move up and down. The System explanation: As you can see the different part of the system are marked here. (see fig. 12) I also show the different forces that are created by the gravity and tension, F - Force and T - Tension. (see fig. 13)

S1 S4

Fig, 12

Fig, 13

Fig. 12, 13, Final drawings of the system.

Losing My Balance

The System

21.

P H Y S I C A L - R E S E A R C H

.22 System 1

The first time I used the system I was totally focused on how it works. The line creates tension, and the tension will let the object hanging. The lines where thin because I was thinking of creating a small balanced object. This resulted into the finding of system that uses 2 lines and an object to become a balanced hanging object. (see Fig, 14, 15, 16)

Fig, 14

Fig, 15

Fig, 16

Fig. 14, 15, 16, First physical tests models, Losing my balance, Koos Bergmans, 2022

Materials Strings: sewing treat Object: foamboard Size object: 50 mm x 50 mm Size line: 400 mm

Losing My Balance

System 1

P H Y S I C A L - R E S E A R C H

System 2 The most fascinating part of the system happened when I accidently removed the tension of the string. This resulted in the object falling. At the time I was just focusing on doing research by making so I wasn’t looking for a conceptual meaning behind the falling of the object. Finding out that the only reason the object felt was the removing of the tension fascinated me. This created the search towards a hack within the system. How can I let the object fall but being able to catch it again. The result of letting the object be able to hang balanced again was the fixing of the lines in the front of the object, helplines. These lines determent how the object is hanging in the lifeline. If they are equal the object will be leveled. If the top one is smaller the front of the object will face more upwards. This gave me the freedom the play with the positioning of the object. (see fig, 17, 18, 19)

Fig, 17

Fig, 18

Fig, 19

Fig. 17, 18, 19, Second physical tests models, Losing my balance, Koos Bergmans, 2022

Materials Strings: Fishing line Object: Wooden Kapla pieces Size object: 100 mm x 100 mm Size line: 1500 mm

Losing My Balance

System 2

23.

P H Y S I C A L - R E S E A R C H

.24 System 3

As a designer I am interested to implement interaction within the work I make. Finding that the catching of the object is an interesting feature of the system the implementing of interaction was a goal. By using theoretical research, I found that the use of interaction came hand in hand with curiosity. Using a method of triggering curiosity called: Disruption. This method is used to create a effect were the participant will get a certain “shock/surprise” experiences. How to create this effect and what does it do? Translating the effect that our actions have on our surroundings was the goal of the disruption method. How can I create the biggest change in a room or space with a simple interaction? I already had the interaction I only needed to find the best way to create the changing effect. Light was the answer. By intergrading light into the installation, the movement of the object will influence the amount of shadow in the room. How more you interact how lower the object how more shadow there is in the room. This is not only influencing you but also the people watching the installation. Are you aware? (see fig, 20, 21, 22)

Fig, 20

Fig, 21

Fig, 22

Fig. 20, 21, 22, Second physical tests models, Losing my balance, Koos Bergmans, 2022

Materials Strings: White nylon line Object: Foamboard Size object: 700 mm x 700 mm Size line: 1500 mm

Losing My Balance

System 3

P H Y S I C A L - R E S E A R C H

25.

System 4 The installation felt done. As in the effect felt done. But there is still a problem that needed to be solved. The moving back up of the object. One can let it come down, but not back up. The first idea was to use a motorized system that pulled up the object automatically. I noticed that the whole installation was built upon a system that is nature/physics based, why use a motorized system when you can keep it mechanistical. Using someone’s interaction to bring the object down and back up. To intergrade this in the system there needed to be an extra system, this system was a pulley and sprockets-based system to let the object back up. To create this system, I did some research on how pulleys work, you can divide forces on a line by adding a pulley on a line. In my case this was not necessary because the weight of the object was not that heavy. The line that needed to be pulled on needs to have some weight. This weight will help the user to pull the weight down and the object back up. The weight can’t be heavier than the object otherwise the object will not fall. Similar as a seesaw. (see fig, 23, 24, 25)

Fig, 25 This mechanism is the way how the object is lifted back up. This provides equal rotations but not the same length per round because of the different sizes of pulleys.

Fig, 23

Fig, 24

Fig. 23, 24, 25, Second physical tests models, Losing my balance, Koos Bergmans, 2022

Materials Strings: White nylon line Object: Foamboard Size object: 1000 mm x 700 mm Size line: 1500 mm

Losing My Balance

System 4

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Losing my balance started with a simple question what turned out to be a question no one can create a clear answer to. What is balance? Balance was the starting point towards the creation of a translation of a major learning point I experienced during this research. The consequences of our actions and how this influences our surroundings. Balance is a word everyone knows within at least two different contexts. Within this research I have focused on balance in life and balance in physics. These topics relate more than I thought in the beginning of this research. The relation isn’t only in the word but within the translation I tried to give to the meaning of the two kinds of balance, life, and physics. Using the physics translation to create the physical system that is fragile, simple, and cohesive with gravity and forces. In combination with the meaning of what life balances is for me the whole system became a conversation piece that raises awareness for of the consequences of our actions. The research was built on researching by making. In this way I was able to create steps that perfectly fit with my own way of working. Getting inspired by works of others and researching how other people think about what balance is. These other perspectives create more clarity for your own vision towards the topic. Important to understand that everyone has another way of seeing balance. This results in other ways of seeing consequences, and influences of our actions. All are good ways to deal with changes in life, it is your own path. This research created clarity in my own path, in my way of seeing the consequences when I think of taking a step towards the unknown.

Losing My Balance

Conclusion

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