Recap: FashionWare Show at CES 2012
We caught up with Kristin Neidlinger, designer and founder of SENSOREE, an art tech design lab based in San Francisco, CA, to get her thoughts on the 2nd Annual FashionWare show at CES 2012 in Las Vegas, and to learn more about her wearable tech pieces. FashionWare is a showcase of wearable technologies that highlight the latest in high tech and fashion.
SFFT: What brought you to FashionWare and what was your general experience of the show?
KN: I was honored to assist the FashionWare show at CES 2012 as the Robot Stylist (a.k.a. electronics primper) for the runway as well as show two of my SENSOREE designs.
This show was exciting as it brought together innovative, raw, fresh, and refined pieces of fashion blended with technology from around the globe. From Moon Berlin and Diana Eng to the students of OCAD, the show represented an overview of today’s tech-conscious fashions. All designs were also accessorized with innovative gadgetry – from body and head monitors to skinny laptops – giving the models more of a story.
Speaking of which, we were afraid that one of the models might fall off the runway – they were a little distracted by the gadgetry. Thankfully, no one did. But we see this kind of behavior on the streets all the time: someone playing around with their touch screen and not noticing oncoming traffic. This is why we designers put technology into the clothing, to embody the self, and make the body more animated and present.
We are evolving and merging. Smart phones have introduced the idea of wearable tech. We carry smart phones everywhere and utilize their transmedia to heighten our experience. That gives a nice segue to fashion, asking us how these technologies can be more integrated so we wear them as an expression, or even a bio-monitoring sensitive skin.
Overall, FashionWare curated a nice mix of form and fashion from all over the world and provide a well-balanced show.
SFFT: What were some popular technologies and style combinations you saw in the show?
KN: LED light displays were very popular. Most of the showcased designs had lights or even fiber optics. From Diana Eng’s Twinkle Skirt that flickers with movement and Sensoree’s GER Mood Sweater’s collar that changes colors with emotion, to fiber optic necklaces by Moon Berlin, the runway was full of glimmer and light.
SFFT: Are there any pieces or designs you think can be easily introduced for everyday wear?
KN: Alasdair Leighton’s Freescape Cycle Jacket, a winner of a Sony Ericsson competition, provided a very functional design. (Freescape is a motion responsive cycle jacket, plugged into a SmartWatch, which allows the wearer to indicate direction simply by moving their arms.) As the cyclist presses a button on his watch, his sleeve flashes to notify traffic of change in direction. This could be very useful. I’d like to see a whole flock of cyclists with sleeves aglow.
Alasdair Leighton Freescape Cycling Jacket
SFFT: Are there any pieces or designs that you think will greatly impact the wearable tech landscape?
KN: The flexible circuits in Moon Berlin’s pieces are amazing. Developed by the Fraunhofer Institute and Stretchable Circuits, they are washable, flexible, and quite beautiful as well. These durable circuits offer wider and more stable production for wearable technology. Here is an interview link providing more details.
Also, Assymetrical Modern 001, an LED embedded dress designed to react to luminosity, designed by 3lectromode, is sold as a kit with a conductive zipper on Etsy. What a great concept to illuminate technology to the crafty ones!
Of course, if you’d rather, you can buy it fully assembled. But we are seeing more and more wearable kits available to the market, opening up exposure to wearable tech.
SFFT: Tell us about your mood sweater and Furver. What are the main concepts behind it?
KN: I had two designs on the runway: the GER Mood Sweater and the premiere of the Furver Fo. Corset. This was the first time the Furver has been worn.
SENSOREE GER Mood Sweater
The GER mood sweater is a GER, or Galvanized Extimacy Responder. It reads the emotions of the wearer based on the technology of a classic lie detector test, and the data is shown as an affective color display on the collar. Calm and relaxed emotes aqua, while nervous and excited promotes red tones. The design provides an external blush that is also instant feedback to the wearer.
Furver fo.corset is a conceptual piece inspired by sea anemones and porcupines to create a protective fashion display. This hard shell corset has an interactive “fur” of fiber optic on the nap of the neck. The proximity sensors act as “eyes on the back of the head”: when someone gets too close, the quills rise and bio.luminescent light intensifies to protect personal space.
SFFT: The GER and Furver pieces incorporate elements of bio-metrics and response systems. How do you see the pieces as part of larger trends for wearable technology?
KN: Like the BodyMedia FIT, an all day body monitor armband that was paired with the Furver, bio-metric monitors and displays are becoming increasingly popular. A few years ago, the displays were in handheld devices or exercise equipment. Now they are available on your wristwatch. I see this condensing into garments, as a second skin.
SFFT: How can this be commercialized?
KN: My designs were developed from my MFA research to augment sensory processing disorder. I worked with a span of sensory superheroes – from Tai Chi masters to Ballerinas with heightened nervous systems. I then endeavored to animate their sensory experiences in fashions to be able to train others to embody their extra-sensory experiences.
Elements from these concepts can be incorporated into everyday wear. Hopefully these designs are tools to inspire ideas and expand awareness.
SFFT: Can fashion design incorporate these elements? If so, how?
KN: Conceptual couture pieces like the Furver are called monument pieces in fashion. They are monumental because they are fantastic and aim to inspire and provoke ideas. The pieces are like fashion tools, without any intention or knowledge of how they will be implemented. But the proximity sensing “fur” of the Furver could be added onto a shrug or even a belt. The hard shell corset could be condensed into a bracelet with the interactive fur. There are many options to expand on the idea and markets that would adapt it from gaming to evening wear.
SFFT: What uses would the fur and the corset have for a wearer in other markets?
KN: The fur creates personal space boundaries. If you were wearing it integrated into shawl, in the grocery store for instance, it would respond to a shopper who is honing in on your apples. They would be warded off by the warning of rising fur and intensified lights from your shoulders. Therefore, you could shop in peace. The hard shell is also a form of protection, visually and as an exoskeleton. This concept could be utilized in motor sports, to protect vital organs. Or the hint of it could be translated into a high fashion appendage.
SFFT: Any closing words to share with the community?
KN: This is very exciting time in fashion. The designs seen at the show come from around the world and combine tech with fashion in conceptual, elegant, and practical displays. Keep an eye out for more integration in the future!
Thank you Kristin for sharing your experience, photos, and video!
To learn more about Kristin and the SENSOREE lab, please visit: www.sensoree.com.
Upcoming SENSOREE Shows
April 3-4, 2012
8th annual Printed Electronics & Photovoltaic’s Conference & Exhibition in Berlin
April 17th- 22nd, 2012
2012 Tortona Design week in Milan
Additional Links
3lectromode: http://www.3lectromode.com/
Diana Eng: http://www.dianaeng.com/
Fraunhofer Institute: http://www.fraunhofer.de/en/.html
Moon Berlin: http://www.moon-berlin.com/
OCAD: http://www.ocadu.ca/
Stretchable Circuits: http://www.stretchable-circuits.com/
Category: Featured, Wearable Tech
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