Digital Poetry in Motion

An exploration of web animation as narrative medium, examining how interactive elements and visual transitions can enhance storytelling. The project weaves together poetry about social media echo chambers with dynamic visual metaphors—rising bubbles, reflecting mirrors, and the relentless flow of time.

A webpage mid animation while the page is being filled in horizontal strips of color -- akin to a sunrise or sunset

Technical Storytelling

The implementation leverages several animation techniques:

SWUP for seamless page transitions
Anime.js for fluid motion elements
Custom timing systems for narrative pacing

Animation Challenges

Pre-View Transitions API, the project required careful handling of:

Script loading synchronization
Style initialization timing
State management between transitions

The technical constraints shaped the narrative structure, turning limitations into creative opportunities.

Visual Metaphors

Each animation serves the story’s themes:

Rising bubbles represent information isolation
Mirror reflections explore digital echo chambers
Time-based animations highlight algorithmic persistence

A webpage mid animation 'filling' a mirror

This experiment demonstrates the web’s potential as a creative medium, where technical implementation and narrative can enhance each other.