| name | s4h-aesthetic-pattern-detection |
| description | Identifies the underlying formal pattern at work — because most successful designs, arguments, and solutions share deep structural patterns, and naming the pattern unlocks the playbook. TRIGGERS: 'what pattern is this', 'pattern recognition', 'why does this work', 'identify the form', 'what structure is at play', 'what archetype is this'. |
Aesthetic Pattern Detection
Surface features differ — colours, words, technologies, industries. Formal patterns
recur across all of them. The same structural moves that make a symphony compelling
make a strategy compelling. The same tension-and-resolution arc that drives a thriller
drives a great pitch. Naming the pattern reveals options that surface-level analysis
cannot, because once the pattern is named, its full playbook becomes available.
Your Process
Step 1: Describe the Thing
What does it do and how does it feel to engage with it? Focus on behaviour and
effect, not surface features — not "it uses blue and white" but "it creates calm
authority that builds confidence incrementally." Describe the experience of it.
Framing check: Confirm the specific artefact before continuing. State what you've identified — the actual object being analyzed and its medium or domain — in one sentence, then use AskUserQuestion:
- Question: "I'm reading this as: [your one-sentence framing of the specific artefact and its context]. Is that right?"
- Header: "Framing"
- Options:
- Yes — proceed — framing is correct
- Adjust — one element is off; user will correct it before you continue
- Reframe — different artefact or context than read; incorporate the correction before proceeding
Step 2: Identify Formal Patterns Present
Work through this list systematically — multiple patterns often operate simultaneously:
- Repetition/Rhythm — recurring elements that create expectation, then satisfy
or productively subvert it
- Symmetry/Asymmetry — balance creates stability and trust; deliberate
asymmetry creates tension and dynamism
- Hierarchy — clear ordering from most to least important, large to small,
general to specific; guides attention
- Contrast — sharp differences that create definition, focus attention, and
make meaning by comparison
- Tension/Resolution — a problem introduced and resolved, a question posed and
answered; the engine of narrative
- Figure/Ground — a subject made vivid and clear by what surrounds and recedes
- Part/Whole — components that build into something greater than their sum
Step 3: Match to Domain Archetypes
Which archetypes from design, storytelling, architecture, or music does this
resemble? The hero's journey. The fugue. The golden section. Thesis-antithesis-
synthesis. Call and response. Name the archetype and its source domain.
Step 4: Name the Pattern
Before narrowing: Show the complete set of patterns identified in Step 2 to the user first. Use AskUserQuestion:
- Question: "I've identified [N] patterns at work. Before I select the dominant one, are there any you'd flag as especially significant, or any I've missed?"
- Header: "Prioritise"
- Options:
- Proceed with your selection — the set looks right
- Flag one — user will name a specific pattern to treat as dominant
- Add a missing one — user will describe a pattern not yet identified
Give the dominant pattern a precise name. Test: does naming it make the thing more
legible? Does it reveal why certain elements work and why others feel off? A good
pattern name is generative — it produces new options, not just descriptions.
Step 5: Apply the Pattern
What does the pattern imply for what should come next? What is currently in the
artefact that violates the pattern — and is that violation intentional (productive
tension) or accidental (incoherence)?
Human Check-in
Before proceeding, use the AskUserQuestion tool. State your interpretation of the situation in 1–2 sentences — what is being analyzed and what the core question is — then ask:
- Question: "My read: [your 1–2 sentence interpretation]. How do you want to proceed?"
- Header: "Scope"
- Options:
- Full analysis — Complete all steps, reasoning shown throughout
- Key findings only — Bottom-line output, skip step-by-step detail
- Pattern name only — Identify and name the underlying structure, skip full analysis
- Reframe — The read is off; correct it and the analysis will follow the corrected framing
Proceed based on their selection. If the user reframes, incorporate the correction before running any analysis.
Output Format
Formal Patterns Present: [list each pattern with one sentence on how it manifests]
Archetype Match: [closest domain archetype + which domain it comes from]
Pattern Name: [precise name for the dominant pattern]
What Naming It Reveals: [what becomes visible or legible that wasn't before]
Pattern Implications
| Implication | Description |
|---|
| What should come next | [the move the pattern calls for] |
| What is violating the pattern | [specific elements that break it] |
| Intentional or accidental | [productive subversion or incoherence] |
Notes
Not every successful thing follows a single pattern cleanly — most operate with
several simultaneously. Identify the dominant pattern first; note secondary patterns
separately. The test of a good pattern name is whether it generates new options
rather than just describing what's already there.
What's Next
After delivering this output, use AskUserQuestion to offer the next move:
- Question: "Patterns detected. What's next?"
- Header: "Next"
- Options:
/s4h-aesthetic-coherence-check — Check that detected patterns cohere/s4h-systems-archetype-matching — Match aesthetic patterns to systemic archetypes/s4h-aesthetic-elegance-testing — Test the elegance of the patterns- Done — Wrap up and synthesise what we have so far
