Association with me
2024. 06 - 2024. 07
Used Program: Figma
Type of Work: Graphic
Overview
This project began with the question, "How well do my traits align with those of others?" We interact with many people daily, but it can be unclear who shares similar traits with us and how close we are to them. This project aimed to analyze the characteristics of my acquaintances and our relationships to visually explore the diversity within those connections.
The analysis categorized individuals based on the similarity of their traits and their relational proximity to me. Through this process, I discovered that relationships aren't simply defined by how close or distant they are. Sometimes, people who are close to me may have contrasting traits, while those who feel distant may surprisingly share similar characteristics.
Building on these insights, I graphically represented each individual's traits and relationships, creating a visual identity resembling a totem. This project transcends mere relationship analysis by transforming the dynamics of my connections into a unified identity, offering a fresh perspective on the layered meanings within our relationships.
Research & Analysis
And the number of external and internal questions was matched equally.
I then organized these questions in a Google sheet and interviewed my acquaintances, recording their responses during our meetings.
Design
This project involves comparing who appears to be the closest match to me and visualizing each person's identity as a unique totem.
The base of each totem is an oval shape, stacked like stones in a cairn. The closer someone's external traits are to mine, the larger the circles become. Similarly, the closer their internal values are to mine, the darker the circles become.
There's a Korean proverb, "근묵자흑 (Geunmukjaheuk)," which traditionally means that one becomes tainted by being in the company of evil influences. However, I wanted to reinterpret this proverb to convey the idea that the closer someone is to me, the more deeply colored they become, reflecting a stronger connection.
The totem's structure visually distinguishes between external and internal factors through the size and brightness of the circles. There are 32 questions for each of the external and internal factors, for a total of 64.
First, the answers to the 32 external questions determine the size of the circles, which are then stacked from bottom to top. Next, the answers to the 32 internal questions determine the brightness of the circles, which are applied in the same order from bottom to top.
Final Visualization
The owner of this totem is my boyfriend, with whom I’ve been in a relationship for 11 years. We meet about once a week for dates, but overall, our personalities aren't very similar. While he is incredibly rational and objective about external matters, he tends to be endlessly compassionate and lenient in his own affairs. Given these contrasting traits, I expected his totem to look quite different from mine. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that we still share some similarities.
The owner of this totem is a coworker on the QA team. Although there is an age difference between us, she has a lot in common with people my age and possesses qualities that aren't typical of the younger generation. One key difference is that she enjoys drinking often, and she's surprisingly passionate about tennis, which is a trait I admire. Initially, I expected her to be quite different from me, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that we share more similarities than I anticipated.
The owner of this totem is one of my high school friends. We spent a lot of time together from our teenage years into our early twenties. Since we grew up together, I assumed our personalities would be pretty similar. However, as we began leading our own lives in our mid-twenties, I noticed that our tastes and preferences had changed quite a bit. Despite these changes, we share enough similarities to believe that we are well-aligned.
The owner of this totem is also one of my high school friends. Although we grew up together, we had different interests and academic paths, and we didn’t spend as much time together after school as I did with others. However, whenever we talked, I found we had a lot in common and surprisingly similar tastes, so I expected we would be quite alike. To my surprise, when I reviewed the responses to the questions, I realized that this friend has a very distinct personality, either completely different from mine or the same.
The owner of this totem is a colleague from my company who works in the same team as a publisher. Although we've only worked together for a year, I’ve found that our personalities and tastes are surprisingly similar. Given that we have similar roles and collaborate closely almost every day, I wonder if we've naturally grown accustomed to each other. Among the people I interviewed, even though we haven't known each other for long, I consider this person to be the closest to me right now.