Musical tiles at Battery Park

I saw a very interesting example of successful interaction design at Battery Park over the weekend. There is a spot on the ground where 9 metal tiles are arranged in a 3×3 pattern. When you step on any of them, they make a sound, and each one has a different tone.

For the 30 minutes that I was sitting there, the same scenario kept re-occurring. A couple of people would walk by, someone would try it out, they would stop and play with it, more people would stop and try it, and in a matter of minutes a bunch of strangers would crowd around the piece, jumping around and talking to each other.

I think this is the best possible interaction scenario that my work could have. It should be instantly recognizable, easy and fun to use, and bring people of all ages together. This is a very difficult thing to achieve, but I think simplicity is a major player and an important factor to remember when designing objects for others to play with.