Client: University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology
Project: Deer Enclosure Multi-touch Poetry Interactive

Inspiration

With so many scholarly interpretations of a single poem written by Wang Wei in the 8th century, this interaction enables visitors to explore the importance of context in discerning the intended meaning of Chinese characters. 

Narration

Drawing from the work of modern Chinese language scholars, visitors are invited to examine and create their own interpretations of the original Deer Enclosure poem.

Design

With young visitors and families in mind, the Deer Enclosure was designed for a multi-touch table that allows visitors to interact simultaneously from four stations. Surrounded by objects on view, the interactive encourages visitors’ understanding of and appreciation for the beauty and complexity of the Chinese language.

Interaction

Through the multi-touch table, visitors can scroll through completed translations ranging from the 18th century to today. Visitors can also create their own variation of Deer Enclosure by selecting individual lines of the poem from different interpretations, and compare their creation to the work of a contemporary Chinese scholar.