Vanish Pointer

Perspective defines how we interpret the world. Two-dimensional interfaces limit perception by enforcing predefined hierarchies. Vanish Pointer by Hyunseo Cho breaks these constraints by exposing the depth of citations and connections, emphasizing the pathways and environments shaping the content. Her web project highlights often-overlooked citation elements to invert hierarchies, arrange content multidimensionally, reveal hidden relationships, and explore endlessly expanding connections through dynamic, distorted views.

Hyunseo Cho, Seoul / South Korea — Feb. 4, 2025

Hyunseo Cho, Vanish Pointer © the artist.

Hyunseo Cho is an artist who explores the relationship between data, digital environments, and human identity. Her work explores the possibility of reconfiguring digital systems as sensory and interactive interfaces, allowing individuals to become subjectively aware of their structure.

Her web project Vanish Pointer uses perspective as a metaphor for interface design. The input of a web address can be used to arrange content in three-dimensional space and explore it through linear perspective, reverse perspective, multiple vanishing points, curvilinear perspective, panorama, infinite perspective, spheres, anamorphosis, or dynamic viewpoints.

The Vanish Pointer cube generates a basic x, y, and z structure by analyzing content boxes within the web address. The depth value (z-axis) is based on citation information, highlighting often-overlooked elements such as sources, authors, dates, and internal citations. Users can invert hierarchies, arrange content multidimensionally, discover relationships through distorted views, or explore endlessly expanding sources. They can also simulate spherical views, rotate screens, or reorganize data to reveal connections visible only in specific contexts.

With this web project, Hyunseo will experiment with ways to recontextualize web interfaces through new frameworks. Vanish Pointer will be developed as both a web extension and a standalone website to reconfigure and explore their desired web address in real time or download the page.