Haphephobia
Considering how nerve-racking the past two years have been for all of us, I thought the most relatable emotion would be fear. Fear of the uncertain, fear of what's coming next, Fear of coming in close contact with someone.
“Haphephobia is the fear of touch or close contact.”
The inspiration for this is quite obvious. Despite being vaccinated and making sure to follow all covid protocols, I think it's safe to say we are all always thinking about how safe our environment is at all times. I can speak for myself and say that I still get very nervous when someone unknown comes and stands very close to me in a public space like on a subway and isn't wearing his/her mask properly or worse, no mask at all.
Times like such must be very very difficult for people who already suffer from this condition even before this Pandemic. My sketch is hoping to mimic the anxiety we feel when we come in uncomfortably close contact with someone we don't know very well or suspect is sick.
The edges of the canvas are the areas where the canvas exhibits pastel colors which represent the calm and relaxed mood a person may be at rest. As the cursor is dragged across the canvas, the canvas slowly changes colors. The cursor in this context represents the presence of someone. So as long as the cursor is away from the Individual(represented by the white square), The colors and hence the mood will remain light and happy.
As we drag the cursor closer to the white box, The color starts shifting to a duller shade of the happy color it was at the edges. This is meant to reflect the build-up of tension the person feels when an unknown person is approaching them.
As the cursor approaches the white box in the center, The box turns a bright red and starts vibrating and jittering to represent the anxiety and fear the close contact is inducing. The closer the cursor is to the white square, The faster the jitter.
