Aesthetic Heuristics in Ubimus

Abstract

In this paper we propose aesthetic heuristics as an area of study within ubiquitous music research. Initially we discuss the motivations for narrowing the focus of the experimental variables involved in creativity-centred design studies. Then we place aesthetic heuristics within the current efforts toward designs for creativity support, highlighting recent studies that target everyday musical creativity. The reviewed experimental results point to a gap between the current theoretical proposals in musical creativity and the factors that impact everyday musical activities. Selfreferentiality of the experimental-theoretical construct and early domain restriction are two of the limitations pointed out by previous theoretical work. We provide a working definition of aesthetic heuristics, indicating its object of study and its rationale. We also lay out initial experimental strategies. Potential contributions from interaction aesthetics and ubimus research are discussed, introducing the concept of creative bias and a set of experimental hypotheses. The last section of the paper furnishes examples of creative biases within the context of musical interaction design.Ubiquitous music. Creativity-centred design. Aesthetic heuristics.

Ecologically Grounded Creative Practices in Ubiquitous Music

“…Affordances remain problematic until today. For this reason, we have opted to adopt the more neutral label relational properties for the design qualities that emerge from interaction (Keller et al 2015b(Keller et al , 2015c. So far, we have identified three types of relational properties: material, social and formal.…”

“…Behaviours change materials and materials change behaviours, fostering a process of affordance formation. This process impacts the way the resources are employed to support creative activities, yielding dynamic relationships among resources and agents, also called relational properties (Keller et al 2014c, 2015c; Keller, Otero and Costalonga 2015b).…”

Editorial: Ecologically grounded creative practices and ubiquitous music – interaction and environment

“…Nevertheless, if a musictheoretic framework is restricted to a single genre, then it tends to lose relevance as a scaffold for design (Keller and Lazzarini 2017b). Consequently, ubimus frameworks often treat aesthetic biases as factors to be made explicit by the design process (Keller, Otero and Costalonga 2015), rather than as universal truths to be imposed upon the stakeholders. This is by no means a resolved issue.…”