Embroidered Touch | Life Space
Basic information
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Project Description
This collaborative research project explored the potential role of fashion and technology to nurture meaningful connections between individuals and communities. Its goal is to advance and contribute to the development of touch-sensitive embroidered textiles, that deepen our understanding of how environments can impact the wearer’s everyday experiences.
Geographical Scope
Project Region
Urban or rural issues
Physical or other transformations
EU Programme or fund
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Description of the project
Summary
This project is the result of a collaboration between Anke Loh and Re-FREAM at Berlin’s Fraunhofer IZM. A venue where artists and designers team up with scientists to reimagine manufacturing processes in the fashion industry. ‘Touch’ became the guiding principle for developing the technology and design choices we made throughout this project. It is one of the five senses that has become particularly relevant while living during a pandemic, where social distancing and a lack of physical interaction have become a part of our ‘new normal.’
To illustrate the interaction between the wearer and smart textiles, we designed software that communicates with a circuit board, picking up signals from the embroidered material when it is touched. The data collected is then transmitted via Bluetooth to an app that links to the following site https://embroideredtouch.art/#/
on an external device (laptop, speaker, or mobile phone). The signals trigger a sound file to play through the device, which is a mix of field recordings from nature, urban spaces, string, and percussion instruments created by musician Peter Maunu, as well as spoken and sung words by Christine Shallenberg. The result of this collaboration is four embroidered touch-sensitive sweaters (two for adults and two for children), which communicate through sound and color changes as a response to touch and body heat.
Key objectives for sustainability
Working at the intersection of craft and technology, I often consider the social and environmental impact of the garments I design. It is not simply a question of producing less waste, but infusing meaning back into clothes in an industry driven by fast fashion. It means rethinking the way we conceive garments, as well as who we partner with to explore new methods of production. From community-building initiatives, such as a collaboration with Afghan refugee women on income-generating embroidered textiles, to designing functional costumes for a dance company using zero-waste patternmaking techniques, each of my projects builds on the next.
I am interested in the role technology can play in circular economies and manufacturing within the fashion industry. Through these interconnected projects, the goal is to identify solutions to reduce the use of materials and energy in garment production, as well as establish methods for recovering end-products through reuse and recycling. One technology I am exploring is Additive Manufacturing (AM), which integrates principles of eco-design with industrial production technologies to create soft and touch-sensitive textiles. This process included innovative methods such as embroidering conductive yarns on knitted substrates and bonding electronic modules onto the fabric with non-conductive adhesives.
While the garments are the product of zero-waste patternmaking techniques, they also serve as prototypes for clothing as a tool for meaningful communication and interaction. In order for this technology to become accessible and contribute to meaningful change, the next step will be to place them in disenfranchised and underrepresented communities where communication is vital. Whether the elderly, refugees, or individuals with disabilities, their collaboration and feedback will be a critical component in further developing sustainable and wearable technologies with a positive social impact.
Key objectives for aesthetics and quality
For this project, we approached garments as a tool for communication and enhancing our everyday lived experiences. It forms the basis for my collaboration with Re-FREAM, where ‘play’ contributes to the process of developing touch-sensitive textiles. They are the kind of garments that have the potential to nurture curiosity and joy, particularly in children and individuals with disabilities. Today, many navigate a world of social distancing where human touch is kept to a minimum, yet touch is a vital component in nurturing mental and social wellbeing. It is why we began with the simple idea of creating a sweater or sweatshirt (a universal garment worn across the world in some form) embedded with touch-sensitive embroideries. Wearable technology has the potential to nurture our ability to better listen to our bodies, to be more aware of our interactions with others, and to pay attention to how our environment can affect our mood.
Our research began by exploring the sensory properties of yarns through touch, temperature, and other stimuli. This led to the use of TexPCB technology, laminated conductive fabric, and circuit board developed at Berlin’s Fraunhofer Institute, which we combined with knitting and embroidery techniques. Our initial research was further developed through our collaboration with Re-FREAM. The result was two sweaters for adults, which communicate through sound and change of color, in response to touch and body heat. The element of play came about while watching my nephews and nieces engaging in games of discovery, which prompted us to create two additional sweaters for children. Embracing technology as a medium for experimentation also became an essential part of the research process. We worked closely with a web engineer to develop software capable of capturing sensory input and transmitting it in the form of sounds.
Key objectives for inclusion
There are times when technology can result in social isolation rather than inclusion, and the purpose of applying for this prize is to embark on the next phase of developing the wearable technology created during our collaboration with Re-FREAM. As mentioned previously, all the work we have done up till now builds on previous research projects, to reach the goal of creating sustainable forms of wearable technology that have both a positive social and environmental impact. This kind of work would not be possible without the collaboration and financial support to further develop it.
In order for this technology to become accessible to underrepresented communities and contribute to meaningful change, the next step will be to create case studies in collaboration with disenfranchised and underrepresented communities. The sweaters would be produced on a larger scale, to be tested by individuals such as the elderly in retirement homes, individuals in immigrant communities, and children living in disenfranchised neighborhoods. Their feedback and collaboration will allow us to further develop and refine this wearable technology so that it is meaningful to the very people who will use it. Among the user groups, I would like to focus on our children, who are still developing their sense of identity and confidence. Theirs is a generation that has come under particular stress due to the Covid pandemic, which can adversely affect their mental and emotional wellbeing. Within this context, I want to use the wearable technologies we have developed thus far to enhance the act of play, curiosity, and discovery amongst underprivileged children. The goal is to further refine its potential as a tool for healing, as well as reducing social isolation and anxiety. This prize would enable us to continue to make meaningful advances in wearable technology with the potential for multiple applications that can enhance the human experience.
Results in relation to category
Category: Regaining a sense of belonging
We conducted preliminary test cases and applications of the four prototypes of sweaters in diverse urban environments in Germany. The initial results show that these touch-sensitive textiles can elicit a variety of emotions in people across different backgrounds, abilities, and age groups. It allowed us to observe and document how these individuals approach wearable technologies in their daily interactions as well as the environments they live in. These case studies are important as they provide valuable information related to the comfort, functionality, and use of touch-sensitive textiles in a variety of situations and environments.
The results and lessons learned from this initial project, using touch-sensitive garments as a form of communication, will inform the next phase of this collaboration with Re-FREAM. We continue to study the role sound and touch-sensitive textiles can play in connecting culturally and socially diverse communities in urban settings. In this next phase, touch-sensitive textiles will take the form of tablecloths placed as interactive installations within urban settings. Tables have long served as communal meeting points to eat, debate, exchange ideas, and listen to one another. We envision people sitting together around tables that serve as interactive installations, where they can experience the sounds of their city and communities through their interactions with each other, as well as the tablecloths’ touch-sensitive embroideries. Individuals will trigger audio recordings on external devices, allowing them to rediscover sounds in their communities that often go unnoticed.
How Citizens benefit
While designing this next iteration of touch-sensitive textiles, we conducted several interactive sessions with adults and children representing diverse backgrounds. This enabled us to incorporate different insights, perspectives, and priorities to keep in mind while designing the software. Part of this process will also include collaborating with community members on the development of sound recordings, interventions in public spaces, and the creation of touch-sensitive textiles inspired by local arts and crafts. The result will be fabrics that transmit the sounds of the city’s communities culled from field recordings to include spoken words, music, the acoustics in the streets, and more, in order to capture and reflect the city’s vibrant and diverse neighborhoods.
Next, we will develop a collection of embroidered touch-sensitive tablecloths in an array of colors featuring different designs inspired by the city’s diverse communities. The textiles used for these tablecloths will be repurposed from found fabrics or textiles donated by residents, combined with fabrics reconstructed with zero-waste patternmaking. The touch-sensitive embroidered tablecloths will have unconventional shapes, following the outline of the touch-sensitive embroideries that will be applied to them. The samples and final prototypes for the touch-sensitive embroideries will be produced on ZSK embroidery machines that are available on a fee-for-service basis.
The final step will be to design and construct tabletops in the various shapes of the embroidered tablecloths. These textiles will be affixed to the tabletops as table linens, and installed at temporary pop-ups in the public spaces of communities, with chairs placed around each table. The final touch-sensitive textiles are designed to encourage users to use play as a tool for coping and navigating the environments in which they live.
Physical or other transformations
Innovative character
When we speak of wearable technology or sensory textiles, the focus tends to be on functionality that prioritizes the monitoring and reporting of various bodily functions, such as providing temperature control (warmth, cooling). Technology is also often perceived as cold and impersonal because it seldom addresses emotional issues connected to isolation, as well as interpersonal relationships and the environments in which we live. Embroidered Touch | Life Space is a collaborative project, that goes beyond those modalities, to explore wearable technology’s potential to contribute to emotional wellbeing as well as foster meaningful connections. It does this by facilitating and encouraging the act of play, curiosity, and creativity within users, as well as encouraging moments of joy while connecting with others through the experience.
Another innovative aspect of this project is the level of collaboration that continues to take place between various scientists, artists, technicians, and creatives throughout Europe. The teamwork involved is a reflection of our desire to build bridges and tools of communication through the development of wearable technologies.
Learning transferred to other parties
As we continue to develop wearable technologies, it can be used in various contexts, forms, and applications such as a learning tool for children within schools, a mode of communication for individuals with disabilities, or offering comfort to the elderly experiencing social isolation. Widening the reach and development of these technologies means sharing its potential through various platforms such as social media, as well as virtual and in-person presentations at regional and international conferences and trade fares.
At the core of this development and growth is continued collaboration, as each project builds on the next. The technological know-how to create our initial prototypes was developed through collaboration with Re-FREAM in Berlin. As we continue to seek more partners in Europe, we are now reaching out for additional input from the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech (UPC), one of the European Union’s leading technical universities in the fields of engineering, architecture, sciences, and technology. In collaboration with Consortium Partners Regional Centre for Contemporary Culture of Barcelona (CCCB) and UPC, we will continue to develop and refine samples for the sound output and sound palettes gathered from neighborhoods throughout the city. These sound palettes will be activated by the embroidered textiles using existing hardware and software modified specifically for this project (www.embroideredtouch.art).
