PDA-based HyperPoem 2002
Commission, New Orleans Center for Contemporary Art

Assoniations is the first attempt to bridge principles I have explored in narrative to date into a prosaic form. In addition, this installation introduces the inclusion of associative texts on handheld devices as well. In assoniations, the 'poem', begins with a visual lexia consisting of a short verse and associated image with the title being displayed in the upper right hand side. To the left, several associated titles suggest branches the reader may wish to follow. In this way, the user may construct a poem for themselves liek a congnitive 'string of pearls by repeating this process through three 'states' or groups of verses'.

However, as almost any text is finite, the end result of any regenerating reading operation is to eventually end or recycle through the text. In this case, the reader recycles through the text, exploring outwards from their most travelled options, creating a narrative shape I call a 'cognitive braid', similar in shape to a strange attractor.