Abstract

Screen-based visual movement is increasingly a key characteristic of mobile phones, gaming platforms, operating systems and websites. This thesis presents  ‘kinetic interface‘ as a key concept for analysing screen-based digital artefacts that are characterised by visual movement. Among several concepts introduced for understanding kinetic interfaces, ‘navimation‘ refers to actions of navigation that are intertwined with visual movement.

Kinetic interface design plays an important role in shaping mediated human activity and meaning making. How can we understand the employment of movement in kinetic interfaces, and what are the features and communicative potentials of such interfaces? How may we investigate such a phenomenon that is still emerging, in and through design?

This thesis adopts a sociocultural view on the design and analytical study of interfaces, informed by social semiotics and activity theory. Taking a  ‘research by design‘ approach, the study combines textual analysis with experimental design production. The main contribution of the thesis is a range of concepts that are introduced for analysing and constructing kinetic interfaces. The study thereby demonstrates the possibility of constructing theory and concepts through design experimentation coupled with analysis.