Screensavers can be used in a variation of ways. They start after a pre-determined duration of inactivity on your computer. Many screensavers seem conceptually lacking, serving no real purpose. I wanted my screensaver to act as a tool for it’s users.
I first started this project with the concept of human breath. Following the 4, 8, 7 method of breathing, the screensaver acts as a breathing guide to relax and destress its participants. As the circle grows, users are meant to breath in. Next, the circle pauses, gesturing that the breath should be held, then released as the circle shrinks. This cycle repeats three more times, each time adding another ring around the initial circle —acting as a counter and signifying this cycle of breathing should be done four times in a row.
In initial sketches, I used a white background and colored circles, this didn’t reflect the zen mood I was hoping to achieve. The blue and the white better suit my concept.
In another iteration of this project, I tried a pulsing effect to represent the ‘holding breath’ stage of the cycle. This iteration was created to have a continuous movement, but in doing so it moved away from my original idea. I tested both iterations on multiple people, all of which were confused by when to inhale and exhale, which drew me back to my original idea.