Aiysha Panchbhaya

Imperfec involves a set of cards, created to help those who suffer from Body Focused Repetitive Behaviours (BFRB, which include disorders such as skin-picking and nail-biting) avoid confrontation. Those who have BFRB tend to become more reclusive and self conscious, often having feelings of anxiety due to the effect their behaviour has had on their features. These cards are designed to be used when a sufferer of a BFRB is in a situation out of their control, where they are feeling ashamed, to provide them with a sense of ease and comfort. It’s a way to educate and change societal views in a non-confrontational way. The illustrations used throughout the project are made to help associate BFRB, not with imperfection or disgust, but with normality. It’s an illness and not something people can control.  

Initially my focus was on creating a solution for BFRB. However, this then changed into fighting the stigma surrounding BFRB as I found that treatments were very individual and that what may work for one person will not work for others. Instead, I changed my perspective and decided to focus on changing society’s perception of BFRB to make it seem less taboo.

These cards are the main interaction between persons, the QR code on the back of the cards leads to a webpage, designed to be a comfortable place to find all the help needed to educate oneself on BFRB. Alongside the webpage is an animation to help learn more information regarding BFRB as opposed to long paragraphs of text.