Photography as Intermedia

Master thesis on the formation of New Media from the perspective of art theory

In recent decades, a range of contemporary artworks has emerged that defy classification within traditional artistic media. Among these are works closely related to photography, yet they resist being defined solely as photographic art. This thesis explores a selection of influential photo-related artworks that exist outside the boundaries of any single medium. The research begins with an examination of photography’s evolution as a medium, focusing on the development of its medium specificity from both philosophical and historical perspectives. This analysis lays the groundwork for understanding the boundaries that define photography as a distinct medium. With this foundation, the thesis investigates what it means for an artwork to “exit” those boundaries and how such transitions contribute to the emergence of new artistic forms. Key theoretical concepts—including intermedia, medium hybridity, and the expansion of photographic language—are examined to articulate how photography interacts with and transforms into other forms of expression. The final section of the thesis applies this theoretical framework to a selection of artworks that blur the lines between photography and other media. These works often displace photography from its conventional functions and situate it within heterogeneous, in-between spaces where new modes of expression are formed. While the establishment of a wholly new medium remains ambiguous, what becomes evident is that photography is actively exceeding its traditional limits and merging with other artistic languages. This tendency toward hybridity and transformation has become one of photography’s defining contemporary characteristics.

Multimodal Discourse Analysis of Urban Visual Advertising

An Academic Research; the Case of Vali-Asr Billboard in Tehran

In the contemporary era, visual culture plays a dominant role in shaping public perception, especially in urban advertising contexts. This thesis analyzes the visual content of the Valiasr Square billboard in Tehran—considered the largest outdoor advertising platform in Iran. The research explores how these images, through semiotic structures, generate meaning and engage viewers with implicit ideologies and power dynamics. The study applies Gunther Kress and Theo van Leeuwen’s social semiotics approach to decode representational, interactive, and compositional meanings within 33 selected visual samples displayed between 2015 and 2019. This method helps uncover how visual elements reflect social hierarchies, convey ideological stances, and strategically address target audiences through simplified symbolic techniques. The findings reveal that these images are far from neutral; they actively shape audience perception and reproduce dominant ideologies. By analyzing modality, cultural references, and power relations within the images, the study highlights how visual narratives influence public discourse. It underscores the necessity of critical visual literacy in a society increasingly governed by visual communication.

The Japan pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai presents a rich case of culturally embedded interactive design, where spatial configuration, digital media, and environmental elements converge to produce a deeply personalized visitor experience. The architectural design—a hybrid of Japanese and Arabesque motifs rendered through origami-inspired forms—sets the conceptual framework for the exhibit’s central theme: connection. Surrounding water features function not only as sustainable cooling mechanisms but also contribute to the sensory framing of the experience, highlighting the intersection of form, function, and environmental responsiveness.

Surrounded by a 360° display, a glowing sphere invites visitors into a shared moment of reflection—where tradition meets technology in the heart of the Japan Pavilion.

Upon entry, visitors are equipped with smartphones and earphones, which enable a highly individualized pathway through the exhibition. The experience is layered and progressive: beginning with a mist-filled corridor invoking Japan’s forested geography, it transitions into a three-dimensional projection mapping display that captures the country’s climatic diversity and environmental richness. Real-time audio and visual cues synchronized with user movement generate a coherent multisensory narrative. These choices demonstrate a deliberate application of ambient interaction design to evoke emotional and cognitive engagement, grounded in the cultural semiotics of hospitality and seasonality. As the narrative unfolds, visitors actively navigate through multi-screen environments that display cultural histories, animated motifs, and handcrafted miniature art rooted in Japan’s everyday materials. Each choice made by the visitor—tracked by their smartphone—modifies their experience, effectively producing a data-driven personalization that culminates in a digitally compiled profile of aesthetic and intellectual preferences. This critical layering of technology and tradition illustrates how interactive storytelling can be used not merely for engagement but also for cultural interpretation and behavioral insight. The Japan Pavilion, thus, exemplifies an academically significant model of experience design that blends affective computing, semiotic richness, and spatial narrative.

Designing Interactivity: Narrative Systems in Immersive Media

A study on Narrative Systems in Virtual Worlds

Interactive storytelling represents a convergence of traditional narrative structures and dynamic user engagement, wherein the audience actively influences the progression of events within a fictional world. Rooted in the cognitive mechanism of narrative intelligence—the brain’s innate capacity to process and make sense of experiences through stories—interactive narratives build upon our evolutionary predisposition for immersion in narrative formats. This neurological foundation enables users to experience deeper cognitive and emotional engagement when interacting with story-driven systems. The design of interactive stories demands a shift in focus from storytelling to narrative architecture. Scholars such as Hartmut Koenitz have highlighted that, in interactive media, there is no fixed story to tell; instead, designers construct a system of possibilities that users navigate. Central to this approach is the tension between user agency and narrative coherence. Interactive systems must balance structured emotional arcs with freedom of interaction, often through intricate control of narrative elements such as “cut sequences” or contextual triggers. From a structural perspective, interactive storytelling can be categorized into plot-based and character-based models. Plot-based systems prioritize the overarching moral and intention of the narrative, allowing for consistent thematic delivery despite user decisions. In contrast, character-based systems emphasize behavioral modeling and relational dynamics among virtual agents, affording more nuanced interactions but often at the cost of narrative consistency. Each model brings distinct affordances and limitations, as outlined by comparative studies in digital storytelling frameworks (e.g., Cai et al., 2007), and contemporary research increasingly explores hybrid solutions that aim to reconcile narrative coherence with emergent interactivity.

Other Research Projects:

Virtual Reality in Marketing: A Framework, Review, and Research Agenda
A Review on Motion Capture Technology
A Research on Transmedia Storytelling
A Study on Interactive Public Art
XR and Immersive Experiences for Remedy & Education at Hospitals
An Analysis on Augmented Reality Gaming
Virtual Presenter; Motion capture for real-time interaction
Narrative Approaches to Design for Multi-screen