The interpretative role of an experiencer

Media designers and interactive artists continue to expand the boundaries of experience design (XD) as they engage with increasingly diverse environments. Teaching, designing and understanding experience design and its participatory culture are likewise no longer grounded in traditional ideas such as software engineering, or visual design. Expanding on the theory of `ambiguity as a resource for design' and `open vs. closed text', we propose designers consider the interpretative role of an experiencer as part of an iterative design process. Working with a three-stage grounded theory process, we analyse two case studies, The Remediation of Nosferatu and The Interactive Hammock. With this research, we contribute design recommendations and evidence to support the importance of understanding and awareness of ambiguous vs. prescribed qualities.