Perception
Sizhen Chen
My thesis project is a website exploring the interpretive possibilities of online image descriptions. To comply with accessibility requirements, alt-text is commonly used to help the visually impaired. This standard is predicated on the idea of a neutral observer narrating the features of a picture from an objective vantage point. My project questions that idea.
The Perception website presents a collection of some of the most bizarre images found on the internet. Instead of using a single alt-text interpretation of these oddities, this website allows users to choose from five "narrator bots" to act as decoders on the images. For example, the Function Bot would only illustrate the utilitarian purpose of the picture, while the Feeling Bot would express how it makes it feel. Thus, the user can toggle between pragmatic or sentimental depictions.