I have questions

Have you seen Book.ai and Google’s Talk to Books? With these, you can talk to your books, find passages, ask them questions. I think people are using these a lot but today I was thinking about what changes when a fundamental modality of reading is the ability to “speak” to the book.

There’s obviously a lot to think about just there, but my main question today is something I don’t think they’ve invented yet: Could you ask a design or artwork questions, and if so, what kinds of things would they be?

My first thought it that the artwork would have to stand up to a lot of questions like you would get from a boorish stranger: “What are you supposed to be?”

But it could be historical, like looking at an old master and asking “Who is the dude with the glowing ruff?” It could be technical, or for research: “What percentage of Prussian Blue are you?”, “Where were you during WW II?”, or “How much would it cost to ship you to London?”.

For more contemporary works the questions might be harder: “Was this inevitable?” “Why are you here?”

It might be more useful for design research, like if it’s an interface, you could ask it “Where do people get stuck when interacting with you? Do most people understand you?”

Architecture could be wild. “Is there somewhere inside you that causes people distress?” Or practical: “Where do you lose the most heat? Do you have any ideas for lighting yourself up better?” Or for analysis: “Which building in Barcelona do you have most in common with from a design perspective, historical perspective, material perspective?”

For buyers: “Did the builders cut any corners when it comes to installing your skylight?”

For architectural critics or visitors to Vancouver: “Who thought you were a good idea?”, “Did anyone ever care about you at all?”