I Command You to Talk to Me #WearableWednesday

Yes, the figure clad in white looks scary and commanding, but it means no harm. This suit actually begs for interaction with others by creating various sounds based on proximity.  Designer, Kieun Kim had a very specific reason for this.

The wearable device is used as a medium to talk to people and to bring real connections between me and others. Whoever touches one of the Arduino parts will hear anything from mechanical sounds to baby sounds. When closer, one will hear more human voices like baby sounds; while farther away, one will hear mechanical noises. The reason I used baby sounds is to show pure happiness from being closer, being recognized.

Kieun was very intrigued by something Professor Sandy Pentland stated in class at Parsons The New School for Design.

He mentioned, “Fundamentally, what we are is, we are social animals. The most important things to us are interactions with other people, the presence of other people … and so when you have a wearable, the wearable is in the middle of that.”

This reminds me of the the whole question of what we create and why we create it. It’s something I’ve been asking myself lately. Are wearables another form of companionship? Are they the compromise both in cost and function when one can’t have a robot? There’s a feeling that with social media we are connecting more, yet it is with less “in person” experience. Perhaps we are  learning to sculpt our own people by combining fabric and tech. I believe Kieun is onto something quite interesting, and I wouldn’t be surprised if this project morphs into gamewear. In the meantime, it is still proving my point that proximity sensors are on the rise. So, if you want a piece of the action you should check out our Maxbotix sensors.


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