My paper trail
By Anup Tapadia Founder, TouchMagix Media What do you do with a blank piece of paper? Most commonly, one would write, draw or doodle on it, but rarely do we use the paper itself as a creative medium. A blank sheet of paper always intrigued me as a child. Unlike other children who loved crumpling it and scribbling on it, I loved moulding it into different shapes and patterns. The transformation of a flat sheet of paper into three dimensional forms, using only my two hands, seemed almost magical. Thus, at the age of four, began my journey of unravelling the magic of this art of paper-folding called Origami. Origami was a stimulating pursuit that excited, entertained and taught me some of the most important aspects of depth and dimension. Through this art, I developed keen interest in 3D animation and designing on computers. By the time I was eight, my passion for design with computers grew further and I started learning programming and electronics as a hobby. Another hobby I picked up over time was music — I learnt to play the piano and guitar, and also took part in a few gigs. I had the joy of connecting the dots in my past to see if something fruitful could evolve, and TouchMagix was the outcome. This marriage of art and technology enabled me to create memorable experiences for users through motion and gesture technology. As a designer of experiences, it was integral for me to remove myself from the digital space and explore solutions that originate in the real space. My love for art and design helps me to understand the intuitive nature in which we interact with digital devices. For me, practising Origami and music is a purely therapeutic experience as it allows me to bring my imagination to life. It’s fascinating to interact with paper in this way to create individual and unique paper models. It’s amazing how music can trigger various emotions by just plucking strings in varied patterns. All of this has allowed me to understand human interaction and emotions, which have played a vital role in my professional life. Interactive Experiences is a solemn nuptial of hardware, software, art and design. This holds true in a number of digital devices that are being brought out every day. A quote by Steve Jobs (my inspiration) sums it all up: “It’s in Apple’s DNA that technology alone is not enough — it’s technology married with liberal arts, married with the humanities, that yields us the result that makes our heart sing and nowhere is that more true than in these post-PC devices.” The world works in mysterious ways. I work in building experiences through next-generation motion and gesture technology everyday. Who knew it would all begin with my love of Origami as a child? Feedback: anup_tapadia@yahoo.com
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